oQlIi 


^ 


aWEUNIVERJ/a 
>- 


.Jd3AINI13WV*  %OJI1VDJO^       %OJI1V3JO^^         ^i:?130NVSO3^       "^iliAl 


^lOSANCElfjV. 

o 


> 


^OFCAlIFOff^ 


^OFCAIIFO/?^ 


«A\^El)NIVER%        .vWSA 

>- 

cc 


•^^ 


%Aavaani^       <rii33Nvsoi=^'^     '<^/sb\\ 


^<JOJI1\0-J0'^ 


<;,OFCAIIFO%^ 


^10SANCEI% 


^^5MEUNIVER%       ^vWSANCElfj^ 


^1-11BRARYQ<- 


■%a3AiNn-3WV^      %ojnv3-3o'«^ 


^•OFCALIFO/?^ 


>\..OFCAI 


^^Aavaaiii^"^       ^xiijoNvsoi^     "^/sajAinn^wv' 


^ISvaaiH'^ 


y^-lOSANCElfj-^ 

O 


^lOSANCflfx^ 

o 


39 

_  _       I 

'^/ia3AINn-3WV^ 


^^^IUBRARY(9/- 


■^/sasAwn-suv^       ^<!/ojnv3-jo^ 


^^illBRARYG^^ 


^OFCALIF0ffx> 


^^Aijvaan-^^ 


^<?Aiiviiani^ 


.\MEUNIVER%, 


<ril33NVS01^ 


.^WEllNIVERS;^^ 


<rii3aNvsoi^ 


%MAI 


o 


^/Sa3AI 


^HIBRARY^A 


,^MEUNIVER% 

03 


x^fjnnuw.cm?^ 


^lOS-ANCElfi^ 


^illBRARYQ^^ 


-<^HIBR 


'^^/njiTvi.jfxV 


'^Ji/njiT 


^tllBBARYQ^ 


%0JITV3JO^ 


%omyi^^ 


•\\\EUNIVERS/A 


v^lOSANCElfx^ 


%a3AiNn3WV 


.^0FCAIIF0% 

___     c? 


^OFCAIIFO/?^ 


.^WEUNIVERto) 


o 


^<?Aavjiaii-^^    ^fi'AbvaaiH^       ^riiiONvsm^^"^     "^jiaAiNamv^ 


fi 


VT/ 


AWEUNIVERS//, 


o 


^lOSAKCElFx^ 
o 


%Ji3AINniUV 


^HIBRARYQ^^ 


^HIBRARYQ^ 
^  1    li— ^  ^ 

^_  rr> 

tJ      "     -  ■   - 


^(!/0dnV3J0^ 


^<?ojnvo-jo^ 


en 


^^\^EUNIVER%       ^vWSANCElfj-^ 


^OFCAIIFO/?^ 


^QFCAltFOI?4;> 


<rii30NVS01^        %J13AINnmV 


^IIIBRARYO^. 


-S^ll!BRARYi?A, 
"-3  1    <r-^  ^ 


^<i/0JllVDJO^ 


,^WEUNIVERS/A 


A>:lOS-AfJCElfJ^>, 


<ril33NVS01^        %Ji3AINn-3WV 


^.OFCA1IFO% 


^OFCAlIFOff/^ 


^WEUNIVERy/A 


A^^lOSANCElfj-^ 

o 


>&AavaaiH^      ^(?A«vaaiii^       ^riuoNvsoi^     %a3AiNn-3UV 


^ 


AMEUNIVERS-//,        ^lOSAHCElfj>, 


-^^HIBRARYQc^      ^HIBRARYQc 


^J'ilJDNVSOl^       '%a3AINa-3WV>         %OJI1V3-30^      '^<!/03IW3-3O'^ 


ij:^ 


BOOKBINDING 

AS    A 

HANDWORK    SUBJECT 


V^,  VO). 


Frontispiece 


A    HO:\IE-BOUND    VOLUME, 


PITMAN'S  HANDWORK    SERIES 

BOOKBINDING 

AS     A 

HANDWORK  SUBJECT 

BEING  A  FULL  EXPLANATION  OF  HOW 
BOOKS  CAN  BE  BOUND  WITH  SIMPLE 
APPARATUS     IN    A     SCHOOL    CLASSROOM 

BY 

J.   HALLIDAY 

HANDWORK   MASTER,    COUNTY    TECHNICAL   SECONDARY    SCHOOL,  WORKINGTON  ; 
LECTURER    IN    HANDWORK,    CUMBERLAND    COUNTY    COUNCIL  ; 
MEMBER    OF    THE    STAFF,    BR7GHTON    SUMMER    SCHOOL,    ETC. 

WITH     A    FOREWORD 


CANON   H.   D.   RAWNSLEY 

HON.   SECRETARY  OF  THE  SECONDARY  SCHOOLS  ASSOCIATION  ;     CHAIRMAN, 

THE   SECONDARY   SCHOOL   COMMITTEE,    CUMBERLAND    EDUCATION 

AUTHORITY  ;     AUTHOR    OF    "  EDWARD    THRING,    TEACHER 

AND    POET,"    ETC. 


NEW  YORK 

E.  P.   BUTTON  &  COMPANY 

681   FIFTH  AVENUE 


X  2.71 
FOREWORD. 

As  a  firm  believer  in  the  educative  power  of  handicraft,  it  is  a  true 
pleasure  to  find  that  Mr.  Halliday  has,  in  his  Handbook  of 
Bookbinding,  supplied  what,  so  far  as  I  know,  has  been  a  real 
want. 

He  has  not  only  written  clearly  and  concisely,  but  he  has  admir- 
ably illustrated  the  instruction  he  gives.  He  has  gone  carefully 
into  the  prices  of  tools  and  materials,  and  has  shown  that  the 
work  of  bookbinding  can  be  graded  for  the  various  standards 
of  children  which  may  take  up  the  occupation  under  their 
school-teacher's  supervision. 

It  is  a  great  matter  that  nearly  all  the  apparatus  can  be  made  by 
the  pupils  themselves,  and  the  interest  of  the  processes  is  ensured 
by  the  appeal  which  the  work  makes  not  to  one  sense  only  but  to 
many  senses.  It  appeals  to  craft  of  hand.  It  appeals  to  the  delight 
of  the  eye,  and  not  least  to  the  creative  sense  that  is  astonished  at 
the  result  and  the  usefulness  of  its  labour. 

Last,  but  not  least,  the  art  of  bookbinding  is  one  that  can  be 
learned  and  practised  by  girls  as  well  as  by  boys,  and  it  will  be 
found  that,  having  once  learned  the  rudiments,  it  is  a  pleasant  fire- 
side occupation  for  long  evenings  at  home,  which  will  materially 
add  to  the  neatness  and  good  order  of  the  household,  and  save 
much  expense  at  the  same  time.  The  child  who  has  gone  through 
this  course  will  make  its  own  Christmas  cards,  its  own  note-books, 
its  own  volumes  of  stories,  and  its  own  bindings  for  papers  and 
magazines. 

I  heartily  commend  this  little  volume  of  practical  help  to  teachers 
and  scholars  alike. 

H.   D.   RAWNSLEY. 


PREFACE. 

In  this  little  volume  the  author  has  tried  to  present  the  results 
of  his  experience  in  teaching  what  he  feels  to  be  a  highly  educative 
occupation.  Too  long  has  bookbinding  been  considered  "  too 
expensive,"  and  too  often  even  moderate  results  have  been  thought 
to  be  beyond  the  power  of  children  because  the  necessary  apparatus 
was  "  too  elaborate  for  the  children  to  use."  But,  until  the  analysis 
has  been  attempted,  have  not  these  objections  been  made  to  most 
of  the  occupations  which  are  now  recognised  as  part  of  the  school 
curriculum  ? 

The  aims  of  the  book  are  to  show  in  the  first  place  how  the  neces- 
sary apparatus  may  be  simplified  and  made  in  school,  at  a  cost  not 
exceeding  the  reasonable  allowances  of  most  Education  Committees, 
and,  in  the  second  place,  so  to  arrange  the  operations,  that  the 
teacher  may  secure  a  fairly  regular  gradation  of  difficulty  and 
complexity  in  sewing,  covering  with  cloth,  ornamentation,  etc. 

The  problem  of  dealing  with  large  classes  in  handwork  is  an 
important  one,  and  a  plan  is  outlined  which  will,  it  is  hoped,  help 
the  teacher  in  managing  this  subject  even  with  classes  of  sixty 
children.  All  the  instructions,  moreover,  are  put  in  as  practical  a 
form  as  possible. 

This  book  is  a  result  of  the  experience  of  one  who  has  realised 
that  the  occupation  has  certain  difficulties  as  a  handwork  subject, 
and  who  has  made  an  attempt  to  show  how  they  may  be  overcome. 

The  author's  best  thanks  are  due,  and  are  here  extended  to  Mr.  J. 
Davies,  B.Sc,  for  valuable  aid  in  reading  the  MSS.  and  proofs,  to 
Mr.  J.  T.  Shaw,  A.S.A.M.,  for  many  of  the  illustrations,  and  to 
Canon  Rawnsley  for  the  Foreword. 

J.  H. 


CONTENTS. 


FOREWORD 

PREFACE   . 

I.       INTRODUCTION    . 

SMALL   GREETING    CARD 
MATERIALS      . 

II.  AN  EXERCISE   BOOK  OR  SMALL  NOTE-BOOK      , 

III.  SMALL   SECTION   BOOKS  .... 

IV.  BINDING   THICKER    BOOKS     .... 
V.  SEWING   ON    CORDS       ..... 

VI.      WHOLE    BINDING   AND   CASE    BINDING    . 

VII.      THE    CONNECTION      BETWEEN    BOOKBINDING    AND 
SCHOOL   SUBJECTS   

VIII.      HINTS   AND    SUGGESTIONS      .... 

HEAD-BANDS.  ..... 

TO    STITCH    A   HEAD-BAND 

CONSTRUCTION  OF  A  SCHOOL  LIBRARY  FOLIO 
CONSTRUCTION   OF  A  POCKET  WALLET 
INTER    ALIA    ...... 


OTHER 


PAGE 
V 

vii 

11 

12 
14 

18 

27 

34 

49 

52 

55 

68 
66 
66 
70 
71 
72 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


A  HOME-BOUND  VOLUME    .....         Fvontispiece 

PIG.  PACE 

1.       DIMENSIONED    DIAGRAM    OF    SMALL    GREETING    CARD  .  .12 


2.  THREADING    THE    CORD    IN    A    SMALL    GREETING    CARD 

3.  SUGGESTIONS   FOR   DECORATING   THE    BORDER    WITH    LINES 

4.  SUGGESTIONS   FOR   MORE   ELABORATE    BORDER-DESIGNS  . 

5.  A   COVER   DECORATED   IN   CRAYON   AND   FREE   CUTTING    . 

6.  METHOD   OF   STITCHING   A   FOLIO   OR   ALBUM    . 

7.  THE  FIXING  OF  END-PAPERS  TO  THE  COVER   . 

8.  METHOD    OF   PUTTING   ADDITIONAL   LEAVES   IN    THE    BACK 

9.  METHOD   OF  TYING   THE   COVERS   WITH    RIBBON 

10.  ANOTHER    DECORATED    COVER        ..... 

11.  METHOD    OF   SEWING   WITH   TAPES  .... 

12.  TAPES   FIXED    BETWEEN    MUSLIN   AND    WASTE    PAPER 

13.  DIAGRAM  TO   SHOW   HOW  THE   BOARDS   SHOULD   BE   GLUED 

14.  A    CHEAP    PRESS  ....... 

15.  METHOD   OF   FIXING  THE   BOARDS   TO   THE   BOOK       . 

16.  THE  SHAPE  TO  WHICH  CORNER  PIECES  SHOULD  BE   CUT    . 

17.  SLITS  IN  THE  MUSLIN  TO  RECEIVE  COVERING  CLOTH 

18.  METHOD   OF   CUTTING   PAPER   FOR   COVERING   THE    BOARDS 

19.  A    SIMPLE    STITCHING-FRAME  ..... 
20(a).       STITCHING-FRAME    IMPROVISED    FROM    A    STOOL 
20(b).               ,,                    ,,                          ,,  ,,  CHAIR 

21.  SETTING    OUT    AN    END-PAPER        ..... 

22  AND  23.       THE   PREPARATION   OF  END-PAPERS    . 

24.  SECTIONS   IN   THE   FRAME    READY  FOR   STITCHING    . 


25.       THE  FIRST  TWO  SECTIONS,  SHOWING  ARRANGEMENT  OF  STITCHES       40 


26.  DIAGRAM    TO    ILLUSTRATE    THE    "  KETTLE-STITCH  " 

27.  CATCHING    UP    STITCHES    OVER    THE    TAPES      . 

28(a).       SIDE    ELEVATION    OF    A    HOME-MADE    PRESS    AND    PLOUGH 
28(b).       FRONT 

ix 


13 
13 
15 
19 
21 
22 
23 
23 
25 
27 
28 
28 
29 
30 
30 
31 
32 
34 
35 
35 
38 
39 
39 


41 
41 

42 
43 


x 


LIST    OF    ILLU>i 


41 
42 


45. 


IONS, 

c 

'JS(c).       PLAN   OF  A   IIOMF.-MAUE   PRESS  AND   TLOUGH 
'lS{i\).       PIAGRAM    OF    KNIFE    USED    IN    CUTTING     . 

29.  BOARDS   USED   IN    "  ROUNDING  THE   BACK  "    . 

:<().  A   MORE  SIMPLE   PRESS  FOR  CUTTING      . 

'M.  THE  BOOK  READY  FOR  HAMMERING 

'SI.  STITCHING   ROUND    CORDS 

'X\.  THE   ARRANGEMENT   OF   HOLES   IN   THE    BOARD 

iU.  THREADING    THE    CORDS        .... 

'^S.  THE    SETTING-OUT    OF   A    FABRIC   COVER 

36.  HOW   TO   SET   OUT   A   LINEN    BOOK-COVER 

37.  A   METAL   CORNER,    SHOWING  METHOD   OF  FIXING 

38.  TWO   BOOK-BACKS   DECORATED   WITH   STENCIL  DESIGNS    . 

39.  PRODUCING   SHARP   BL.VCK   LINES   ON   A   CURVED   BACK      . 

40.  THE  FACES  OF  HOME-MADE  TOOLS  FOR  DECORATING  A  LEATHER 

COVER    ...... 

.\RRANGEMENT    OF    LETTERING      . 

DESIGNS    PRODUCED     BY    USING    THE    TOOLS 
FIG.    40  ..... 

43.  A    BOOK-COVER    WITH    PANEL    INSET 

44.  A    COVER    DECORATED    WITH    BLIND-TOOLING 
A    LINING   TOOL  .... 

46.  PASTING  ON  A  HEAD-BAND   . 

47.  BOOK   IN   THE   PRESS   READY  FOR   STITCHING   A   HEAD-BAND 

48.  DIAGR.\M   TO   ILLUSTRATE   THE    POSITIONS   OF   STITCHES    . 

49.  STITCHING    A    HEAD-BAND    (STAGE    1)      . 

50.  ,,  ,.  ,,  (STAGE    2) 

51.  THE    FOLDING    OF   A    LIBRARY   FOLIO       ..... 

52.  DIAGRAM   TO    SHOW   HOW   THE    LEAVES   ARE    JOINED 

53.  DIMENSIONED    DIAGRAM    OF    THE    SETTING-OUT    OF    A    POCKET 

WALLET  ......... 

54.  METHOD  OF  FIXING  HINGES  FOR  THE  POCKET  OF  THE  WALLET. 


ILLUSTRATED     IN 


I'AGK 

44 
44 
46 
47 
48 
49 
50 
50 
52 
53 
56 
57 
59 

60 
61 

62 
63 
63 
65 
66 
67 
67 
68 
69 
70 
70 

71 

72 


BOOKBINDING 

AS  A 

HANDWORK   SUBJECT 


CHAPTER   I. 

INTRODUCTION. 

The  possibilities  of  Bookbinding  as  a  part  of  the  "  Handwork 
Method  "  do  not  appear  to  have  been  very  generally  investigated. 
By  those  who  use  Handwork  as  a  means  of  supplying  an  environ- 
ment in  which  a  child  may  find  stimuli  to  creative  effort,  of  providing 
situations  to  which  a  child  shall  adapt  himself,  this  occupation 
will  be  found  to  possess  decided  value.  One  is  almost  inclined  to 
the  opinion  that  it  is  of  greater  value  than  many  schemes  of  Wood- 
work, because  in  Bookbinding  the  end  is  a  thing  desired — not  a 
teacher-imposed  task. 

One  reason  why  Bookbinding  has  not  been  taken  up  more  in 
schools  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  there  is  a  peculiar  mystery 
in  a  well-bound  book  hanging  round  the  number,  nature  and  order 
of  the  operations  which  have  been  the  means  of  producing  such 
a  compact  and  strong  whole  out  of  so  many  "  bits,"  and  "  at  such 
small  expense,  too." 

The  operations  involved  in  the  construction  of  a  well-finished 
book  are  very  numerous.  The  work  can  be  graded  in  difficulty 
to  meet  the  varying  capacities  of  children  in  the  middle  and  upper 
standards  of  the  elementary  school,  and  in  all  the  forms  that  take 
Handwork  as  a  subject  in  secondary  schools.  Accuracy  is  a  sine 
qua  non — and  accuracy  of  a  much  broader  type  than  is  obtainable 
from  most  other  single  subjects.  The  aesthetic  value,  as  all  will 
admit,  is  very  strong  and  real.  Bookbinding  is  an  inexpensive 
occupation,  yet  even  in  its  most  economical  working  the  results 
obtainable  may  be  very  good. 

At  all  stages  Bookbinding  may  be  made  a  means  of  social  service. 
The  children  of  the  middle  standards  might  make  their  own 
note-books,  and  scrap-books  for  the  infants ;  upper  standards 
could  repair  and  bind  music.  A  friend  of  the  writer's  does  not  buy 
any  exercise  or  drawing-books  for  his  school ;  the  children  make 
their  own.  Magazines  presented  to  the  school  are  bound,  and  form 
the  nucleus  of  a  school  library.     The  facility  with  which  the  work 

11 


112 


BOOKBINDING. 


connects  itself  to  the  lessons  in  art  is  so  natural  that  a  true  correla- 
tion is  established.  The  need  is  felt,  for  instance,  for  some  decora- 
tion outside  or  inside  the  backs  ;  the  design  and  cutting  of  a  stencil 
plate  and  the  application  of  colour  ft)llo\v.  There  is  purpose  right 
through,  and  the  child-pleasure  in  realisation  has  a  very  stimulating 
effect  on  the  whole  work. 

It  is  equally  suitable  for  girls  and  boys.  It  can  continue,  or  replace 
altogether,  the  work  in  cardboard  ordinarily  carried  on,  containing 
as  it  does  many  of  the  operations  involved  in  that  work.  A  child 
need  not  pass  through  a  course  of  cardboard  work  to  be  able  to 
bind  books.  Very  simple  work  leading  up  to  the  substantial 
binding  of  books  can  be  done  in  the  first  standard  or  in  the  top  class 
of  infants.  Greeting  and  menu  cards,  or  small  folios  of  the  Christ- 
mas card  type,  may  easily  be  put  together.  The  paper  used  in 
drawing  with  pastels  is  most  suitable  for  this  class  of  work.  To 
make  a  small  book  of  this  kind,  let  the  children  decide  on  the  kind 
of  thing  they  want,  the  teacher  guiding  them  by  a  little  talk  on 
the  size,  the  number  of  leaves,  the  proportion,  etc.,  most  suitable 
for  the  particular  article  required.  These  details  settled,  paper 
of  the  proper  colour  is  given  out,  and,  after  a  few  hints  from  the 
teacher,  the  children  set  out  and  cut  with  scissors,  or  tear  very 
carefully  to  size. 


IK. 


^ 


K 


/o 


Fig.  1. 


Small  Greeting  Card. 

Let  us  make  a  small  greeting  card  :   size,  when  folded,  5  in.  by 
4  in.  ;   number  of  pages,  including  cover,  six  ;   tied  up  with  ribbon 


INTRODUCTION. 


13 


(prd  foJdizd  t//>. 


\     ^troa/  marks,  //■?- 

of  //jr<zac//hg  of 
Qord. 


Fig.  2. 


• • 


rLTLTLTL /Z/2/~ 


Fig.  3. 


14  BOOKBINDING. 

or  silk  cord.  For  the  cover  take  any  stiff  paper  of  a  sliade  to  match 
the  pastel  paper  to  be  used  for  the  inside.  Set  out  10  in.  by  4  in., 
cut  to  size,  and  fold  down  the  middle  of  the  length.  For  the  inside, 
take  pastel  paper  and  cut  two  pieces  9|  in.  by  3^  in.  ;  this  leaves  a 
margin  on  the  cover.  Fold  these  also  down  the  middle  of  the 
length.  Unfold  all,  lay  the  leaves  on  the  cover,  mark  out  the 
positions  of  three  holes,  and  pierce  with  a  brad-awl  or  other  similar 
tool,  belt  punchers  being  best  (Fig.  1). 

Take  a  piece  of  narrow  ribbon  or  silk  cord  and  thread  it  through, 
as  shown  in  Fig.  2.  Tie  it  in  a  bunch  on  the  back,  and  the  card  is 
ready  for  decoration.  This  may  be  done  in  crayon,  or  in  crayon 
and  free  cutting  in  paper  combined.  If  done  in  crayon,  simple 
and  effective  borders  can  be  arranged  on  the  basis  of  needlework 
stitches,  e.g.,  line  and  dot,  tacking-stitch,  and  knot.  When  once 
a  start  has  been  made  in  the  arrangement  of  such  simple  work  as 
this,  many  patterns  will  be  forthcoming  ;  and  a  commencement 
in  real  design  will  thus  be  established.     (See  Figs,  3,  4.) 

Materials. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  occupation  is  an  inexpensive  one.  A 
book  can  be  bound  in  a  workmanlike  manner  with  the  aid  of  the 
following — (1)  cardboard,  (2)  paper  and  cloth,  coloured  or  white, 
(3)  tape  or  string,  (4)  sewing  thread  and  needles,  (5)  glue-pot  and 
glue,  (6)  knife,  (7)  ruler,  and  (8)  paste. 

(1)  Though  millboard  is  the  best  material  for  boards,  the  writer 
finds  that  he  can  get  along  quite  well  with  the  cardboard 
brought  by  the  children.  This  comes  in  the  form  of  hat -boxes, 
blouse-boxes,  etc. 

If  a  single  card  is  not  thick  enough,  a  board  built  up  of  two  or 
more  thicknesses  is  even  better  than  a  single  board  of  the  same 
total  thickness.  Old  exercise-book  backs  may  be  built  up  into 
serviceable  boards.  In  the  writer's  school,  the  writing-pad  and 
loose-sheet  filing  system  is  in  vogue  for  all  written  work,  and  the 
sheets  of  cardboard  forming  the  bases  of  the  pads,  about  8  in.  by 
6  in.  in  size,  are  requisitioned  from  the  master  in  charge  of  stock, 
and  are  very  useful  for  small  work. 

(2)  Brown  paper  of  various  shades  and  textures — such  as  the 
children  can  bring,  or  such  as  may  be  procured  from  the  school 
office — answers  very  well  for  covering  boards  and  for  coloured 
end-papers  (the  papers  forming  the  inner  linings  of  the  covers  and 
the  next  pages).  Other  self-coloured  or  marbled  papers  can  be 
purchased  at  a  cheap  rate  from  the  educational  supply  firms. 
Any  clean  cloth,  or  scraps  of  coloured  linen,  cahco,  or  plain  canvas, 
all  found  in  Mother's  or  the  sewing-mistress's  clippings-bag,  are 
good  for  "  half -binding  "  in  cloth.  Some  really  fine  results  can 
be  obtained  in  these  materials  if  the  colour  scheme  is  carefully 


INTRODUCTION. 


15 


dee 


^^. 


@@@ 


rntivWi^v 


e@e 


©a  © 


@aa 


Fig.  4. 


16  BOC1KBINDING. 

consiiloioil.  aiul  some  ilocoratidii  in  colour  ajiplicd.  Binding  and 
covering  cloths,  as  supplied  by  bookbinders'  niercliants  and  tlie 
eilucational  supply  firms,  are,  of  course,  very  good  if  it  is  thought 
advisable  to  go  to  the  expense.  Leather  is  not  very  expensive  ; 
skins  averaging  38  in.  by  34  in.  range  in  price  from  2s.  6d.  each 
upwards. 

(3)  Ordinary  unbleached  tape  at  a  penny  a  knot,  or  the  string 
taken  from  parcels  that  come  in,  cannot  be  deemed  expensive. 

(4)  Ordinary  small  darning  needles  at  a  penny  per  packet  are 
the  most  convenient,  and  white-glazed  or  unbleached  linen  thread 
is  the  most  satisfactory  for  stitching.  Sewing  cotton  is  not  strong 
enough. 

(5)  This  is  the  most  expensive  item  of  all,  unless  there  is  a  wood- 
work room  with  tivo  glue-pots  as  part  of  its  equipment.  Do  not 
"  borrow  the  glue-pot  "  if  the  unfortunate  woodwork  master  has 
only  one  in  the  place.  Even  the  glue-pot  can  very  easily  be  dis- 
pensed with  by  using  a  saucepan  for  the  water  and  a  jam-jar  for 
the  glue.     Any  good  glue  is  right. 

(6)  The  children's  pocket-knives,  or  the  knives  made  specially 
for  cardboard  work  [e.g.,  London  Pattern,  as  supplied  by  the  Manual 
Training  Tool  Co.),  can  be  used  for  all  cutting  of  cardboard  and 
paper. 

(7)  Metal  rulers  as  used  in  cardboard  work  are  most 
suitable  for  use  with  the  knife  ;  but,  as  few  children  will  be 
preparing  boards  at  the  same  time,  half-a-dozen  will  satisfy  a  large 
class. 

(8)  Paste,  as  supplied  in  bottles  by  the  various  makers,  is  very 
expensive,  and  often  is  too  wet.  Bookbinders  make  their  own, 
and  that  is  the  writer's  practice,  both  for  bookbinding  and  for 
cardboard  work.  It  is  much  cheaper  to  do  so,  and  one  can  distribute 
portions  of  paste  on,  say,  pieces  of  cardboard,  and  have  no 
hesitation  at  the  end  of  the  lesson  in  consigning  the  "  leavings  " 
to  the  waste-paper  basket. 

The  following  are  recipes  for  pastes  which  will  be  found  thoroughly 
rehable  and  of  good  strength. 

(a)    White  flour           .         .         .         .         .     4  oz. 
Alum            .          .          .          .          ,          .     J  oz. 
Powdered  gum  acacia            .          .          .1  dram. 
Hydranaphthol               ,          .          .          .     |  dram. 
Water 1  pt. 

Mix  with  half  of  the  water,  boil  the  remaining  half  and  pour  it 
into  the  mixture,  and  then  bring  to  the  boil,  stirring  all  the  time. 

[h]    White  flour 1  lb. 

Alum  .  .  ,  .  .  .     2  oz. 

Oil  of  cloves         .  .  .  .  .a  few  drops. 


INTRODUCTION.  17 

Mix  with  water  to  a  thin  paste,  avoiding  all  lumps  ;  add  4  pints  of 
cold  water  ;  heat  gently  in  a  pan,  stirring  occasionally  until  it 
boils,  when  it  should  be  continually  stirred  for  five  minutes.  This 
is  more  easily  prepared  in  smaller  quantities  in  the  same  proportions 
as  above. 

A  good  white  paste  for  "  Mending  "  is  the  following,  taken  from 
Mr.  D.  Cockerell's  book  on  Bookbinding  and  the  Care  of  Books. 

Ordinary  flour       .  .  .  .  .1  teaspoonful. 

Corn-flour  .  ,  .  .  .2  teaspoonfuls. 

Alum  ......     J  teaspoonful. 

Water  .  .  .  .  .  .     3  oz. 

Mix  carefully,  breaking  up  all  lumps,  and  heat  in  a  clean  saucepan, 
stirring  all  the  time  with  a  wooden  spoon.  Boil  for  about  five 
minutes,  taking  care  not  to  burn.  Rice  flour  or  starch  may  be 
substituted  for  corn-flour.  Ordinary  paste  is  not  white  enough 
for  repair  work,  and  is  apt  to  leave  unsightly  stains.  A  corn-flour 
paste  keeps  well  for  about  a  week  ;  as  soon  as  it  becomes  hard  or 
watery,  a  new  supply  must  be  made.  All  the  above  pastes  are  used 
by  the  writer,  and  can  be  recommended.  Some  people  recommend 
poisonous  disinfectants  for  pastes,  but  we  cannot  afford  to  take 
any  risks  in  school,  and  oil  of  cloves  will  be  found  quite  an  efficient 
antiseptic,  at  any  rate  for  the  length  of  time  that  a  prepared  supply 
of  paste  will  last. 

Since  writing  the  above,  the  author  has  had  brought  to  his  notice, 
and  used  with  excellent  results,  a  paste  powder  known  as  "  Lap." 
It  is  a  very  good  adhesive,  is  easily  prepared,  makes  up  free  from 
lumps,  and  is  cheaper  than  flour  paste.  A  small  quantity  of 
disinfectant  should  be  added. 


CHAPTER   II. 

AN    EXERCISE    BOOK   OR   SMALL    NOTE-BOOK. 

Simple  binding  can  be  done  by  the  middle  standards  with  the  aid 
of  materials  described  in  the  previous  chapter.  In  the  first  place, 
let  us  take  the  operations  involved  in  the  making  of  an  exercise 
book  or  small  note-book.  The  great  advantage,  by  the  way,  of 
children  making  their  own  books  lies  in  the  fact  that  they  are  not 
afraid  of  spoiling  them  with  attempts  at  self-expression.  When  a 
fine  new,  sometimes  perfectly  made,  exercise  book  is  presented 
by  a  teacher  to  a  child  in  a  manner  suggesting  to  the  latter  that  he 
ought  to  be  grateful  to  a  generous  world  for  making  such  provision 
for  him,  self-expression  is  somewhat  checked.  Let  the  child  make 
his  own  book,  and  see  which  he  values  more.  The  paper  may  be 
already  cut  to  size,  double  sheet,  or  the  children  may  be  given 
sheets  a  little  larger  than  the  required  size,  and  allowed  to  set  out 
and  cut  their  own.  There  are  pros  and  cons  in  each  case,  and  the 
teachei:  must  decide  for  himself  which  to  adopt.  Plain  or  ruled 
(ruled  by  the  child)  white  and  coloured  papers  are  supplied  according 
to  the  use  to  which  the  book  is  to  be  put. 

To  start,  say,  a  note-book,  take  an  imperial  sheet  of  drawing 
paper  and  fold  it  into  sixteen  parts.  During  this  operation  the 
sheet  will  pass  through  the  various  sizes  which  are  denoted  by  the 
terms  "  folio  "  (folded  once  to  form  two  leaves), "  quarto  "  (folded 
twice  to  form  four  leaves),  "  octavo  "  (folded  three  times  to  form 
eight  leaves),  and  "  sexto  decimo  "  or  "  16mo  "  (folded  four  times 
to  make  sixteen  leaves).  The  term  "  Imp.  16mo  "  means  that  an 
imperial  sheet  has  been  folded  to  form  sixteen  leaves.  This  method 
of  describing  the  size  of  a  book  is  now  losing  some  of  its  significance, 
as  it  is  becoming  customary  to  associate  the  terms  with  a  definite 
size  of  page,  irrespective  of  the  size  of  the  sheet  from  which  the 
pages  forming  a  section  were  made. 

Having  folded  the  sheet,  decide  on  the  way  in  which  the  book 
is  to  open,  i.e.,  in  the  reporter's  note-book  style,  from  a  short  side, 
or  from  a  long  side.  The  leaves  can  be  securely  stitched  together 
with  thread  as  shown  in  Fig.  6,  but  give  out  the  needles  and  thread 
and,  without  any  demonstration,  let  the  children  try  to  stitch  the 
papers  together.  Many  children  (and  adults)  seem  to  think  that 
the  security  of  the  stitching  depends  on  a  large  number  of  stitches. 
Results,  too,  are  largely  affected  by  the  cleanliness  or  uncleanliness 
of  the  hands.  Reference  can  always  be  made  to  other  books,  but 
it  may  be  necessary  to  show  a  few  children.  They  will  probably 
be  in  the  minority.     On  examination  of  the  results,  it  will  be  found 

18 


EXERCISE    BOOK   OR   SMALL   NOTE-BOOK. 


19 


Fig.  5. 


EXERCISE    BOOK   OR    SMALL   NOTE-BOOK.  21 

/o7fo  ot  a/3um- 


Oonc/b  /S  hz  f/<z,c///2  aJ:^r2of 


Fig.  6. 

that  there  are  many  children  quite  capable  of  showing  the  few 
less  capable  ones  how  to  stitch.  The  child  now  becomes  a  teacher, 
the  teacher  acts  as  a  director.  The  writer  has  found  this  method 
very  successful  in  dealing  with  large  classes.  The  example  described 
opens  from  a  long  side. 

The  backs  are  next  prepared.  These  may  be  of  thin  cardboard, 
cut  to  the  size  of  the  paper,  or  J  in.  larger  all  round,  and  covered 
on  one  side  with  the  paper  chosen  for  the  finishing  cover.  Pastel 
paper  or  smooth,  coloured  cartridge  paper  is  excellent  for  covering 
these  backs.  It  affords  good  surfaces  for  suitable  decoration  in 
colour.  Manilla  paper  is  also  very  good  for  hard  wear,  and  renders 
cardboard  covers  unnecessary. 

In  fixing  the  covering  paper  to  the  cardboard,  it  will  be  necessary 
to  water  down  the  paste  to  a  thick  creamy  consistency,  and  to  rub 
it  well  into  the  cardboard.  Lay  on  the  paper,  rub  it  down  to  remove 
all  air  pockets,  place  a  zinc  plate  or  a  flat  board  over  it,  and  leave 
it  to  set.  When  dry,  double  it  up  into  two  equal  parts,  open  it  out 
again,  and  paste  the  inside.  Open  the  book  already  stitched  up, 
lay  it  out  centrally  on  the  pasted  side  of  the  cover,  and  lift  up  to 
the  centre  all  but  the  two  end  leaves,  as  in  Fig.  7  ;  rub  these  well 
down  on  to  the  cardboard,  place  a  fiat  piece  of  wood  on  each  side, 
and  leave  it  to  set ;   or,  double  it  up  at  once,  watching  carefully 


22 


BOOKBINDING. 


Fig.  7. 


and  correcting  any  tendency  to  crease  at  XX,  and  place  it  under 
pressure  to  ensure  flatness. 

When  the  book  is  dry  and  well  set,  the  edges  must  be  cut.  To  do 
this,  draw  a  line  parallel  to  the  back  edge  and  at  such  a  distance 
from  it  that,  when  the  book  is  cut  along  the  line,  it  may  be  certain 
that  the  narrowest  leaf  has  about  J  in.  cut  off  it.  Put  the  safet}' 
ruler  along  this  line,  take  the  knife,  and,  using  the  point — which 
must  be  very  sharp — cut  carefully  but  firmly,  with  the  blade  always 
in  a  vertical  plane,  and  in  the  same  groove  every  time  it  is  drawn 
along.  Cut  one  or  two  leaves  at  a  time  until  through  all.  Take  a 
try  square,  set  the  stock  along  the  front  edge  and  draw  a  line  along 
the  top  edge,  setting  back  a  distance  sufficient  for  the  line  to  fall 
inside  the  edge  of  the  shortest  leaf.  Cut  off  and  repeat  at  the  bottom 
edge.  With  a  chisel  round  off  the  corners  to  a  quadrant  in  plan, 
and  the  book  is  finished. 

A  drawing-book  can  be  made  in  the  same  way,  and,  if  the  leaves 
are  of  different-coloured  papers,  an  aid  in  the  training  of  colour- 
perception  is  secured,  especially  as  the  different-coloured  sheets 
are  always  ready  for  reference.  Simple  designs  may  be  arranged 
for  the  titles  of  the  books,  and  for  the  decoration  of  the  covers. 

Figs.  5  and  10  illustrate  examples  executed  in  crayon  and  free 
cutting  in  paper. 

Albums  for  photographs,  picture  post  cards,  examples  of  free 
cutting,  arithmetical  work  in  paper,  etc.,  can  be  made  similarly 
to  the  above  note-book,  but,  in  order  to  prevent  the  bulking  out 
of  the  leaves  when  it  is  full,  additional  thickness  must  be  put  into 
the  back.  This  is  done  by  cutting  strips,  2  in.  wide,  of  the  same 
kind  of  paper  as  that  used  in  the  book,  folding  them  down  the  middle 
and  stitching  them  in  as  shown  in  Fig.  8.     It  is  advisable  not  to 


EXERCISE    BOOK   OR   SMALL   NOTE-BOOK. 


23 


attempt  to  put  too  many  leaves  into  this  book.  It  is  made  up  in 
one  section,  and  too  great  a  thickness,  say  about  sixteen  pages, 
will  produce  a  bulkiness  pleasing  neither  to  the  eye  nor  to  the  hand. 


Fig.  8. 

It  is  sometimes  desirable  that  these  books  should  be  kept  securely 
closed  when  not  in  use,  and  in  order  that  this  may  be  done,  the 
following  device  may  be  used.  When  the  book  is  complete,  take 
a  piece  of  ribbon  of  suitable  colour,  about  a  yard  long  and  1  in.  or 
IJ  in.  broad.  Cut  slits  equal  in  width  to  this  ribbon  at  A  and  A 
on  each  side  of  the  cover  (Fig.  9).  Thread  the  ribbon  as  shown, 
gumming  the  paper  where  the  ribbon  is  in  contact  with  the  back 
edge,  and  inside  the  covers  as  well  if  thought  necessary.  One 
ribbon  may  be  used  instead  of  two,  placing  it  in  the  middle  of  the 
cover. 


Fig.  9. 


The  experience  gained  in  working  through  the  construction  of 
such  simple  articles  as  the  above  will  be  of  great  assistance  to  the 


-(1042) 


24  BOOKBINDING. 

child  when  more  complex  work  is  undertaken.  It  will  have  set 
him  looking  into  books  to  see  how  they  are  put  together,  and  so 
started  the  inquiring  mind  along  the  path  of  acquisition. 

These  books  will  be  found  quite  as  serviceable  as  ready-made 
books,  and  perhaps  they  are  not  so  liable  to  lose  their  covers.  Any 
single-section  book  may  be  bound  in  this  way. 


EXERCISE  BOOK  OR  SMALL  NOTE-BOOK.  25 


Fig.  10. 


CHAPTER   III. 

SMALL   SECTION    BOOKS. 


Children  in  the  upper  standards  will  be  able  to  bind  single-section 
books  in  a  much  stronger  way.  Instead  of  stitching  the  leaves 
together  as  in  the  exercise  book,  the  following  method  could  be 
adopted. 


Fig.  11. 


Let  AB  represent  the  back  edge  of  the  "  section,"  as  each 
division  in  a  book  is  called,  going  out  beyond  XX,  ABXX  being 
a  plan.  At  about  fin.  from  B,  the  threaded  needle  is  passed  in 
through  the  middle  of  the  section,  out  at  1,  in  at  2,  out  at  3,  in  at  4, 
and  finally  out  at  5,  leaving  spaces  between  1  and  2,  3  and  4,  equal 
to  the  width  of  tape  it  is  proposed  to  use,  say,  i  in.  Now  tie  the 
ends  of  the  thread  together.     (See  Fig.  11). 

If  this  book  is  composed  of  leaves  of  printed  matter,  it  may  be 
necessary,  before  stitching,  to  cut  two  double  leaves  of  plain  paper, 
white  or  coloured  according  to  taste,  and  fold  them  over  the  outside 
of  the  book,  thus  apparently  adding  four  more  pages,  two  at  the 
front  and  two  at  the  back.  The  two  outer  ones  will  form  end-papers 
to  be  pasted  on  to  the  inside  of  the  boards  when  finishing,  and  the 
other  two  leaves  will  act  as  protections  for  the  title-page  and  the 
back  page  of  the  book.  These  are  surfaces  for  decoration.  If  the 
book  is  a  "  made  "  one,  e.g.,  an  album,  leaves  of  the  book  will 
themselves  be  utilised  for  the  same  purpose.  A  "  waste  "  double 
leaf  is  added  to  keep  the  coloured  leaves  clean  during  the  succeeding 
operations,  and  the  tapes  will  be  fastened  down  upon  it. 

27 


28 


BOOKBINDING. 


The  tapes,  about  2\  in.  long,  are  now  passed  through  the  loops 
1  '2  and  3  4,  and  a  piece  of  book  muslin,  thin  linen,  or  cahco,  about 
'2k  in.  wide  and  about  ^  in.  shorter  than  the  length  of  the  book, 
is'pasted  over  the  back.  This  covers  the  tapes  and  must  be  rubbed 
well  down  on  to  the  "  waste  "  papers  on  each  side  up  to  the  edge 
of  the  muslin.  The  tapes  are  now  enclosed  between  the  "  waste  " 
and  the  muslin.     (See  Fig.  12.)     Cut  off  the  supei-fluous  waste. 


mt/6f/n  and 


Fig.  12. 

The  following  method  of  fixing  the  muslin  might  be  adopted 
with  equally  good  results.  Fold  the  leaves  as  for  the  exercise  book, 
adding  the  end-papers  and  a  "  waste "  paper  over  all,  having 
previously  pasted  the  muslin  strip  on  to  the  middle  of  the  back  of 
the  latter.  Stitch  all  together  as  for  the  first  exercise  book,  and 
then  cut  off  the  superfluous  paper. 

Now  prepare  the  boards.  Take  four  pieces  of  thin  straw-board, 
leather-board  or  mill-board,  and  cut  them  to  size  about  \  in.  larger 
than  the  book.  From  the  side  of  the  board  which  is  to  be  placed 
against  that  part  from  which  the  book  opens  (called  the  "  back  "), 
mark  off  a  margin  of  about  1|  in.    (See  Fig.  13).     Glue  or  paste 


I 


Fig.   13. 


SMALL   SECTION    BOOKS. 


29 


the  larger  portion  as  shown,  and  stick  two  boards  together.  The 
same  procedure  must  be  adopted  with  the  other  pair.  Two  pieces 
of  straw-board  and  two  pieces  of  strong  paper  will  serve  just  as 
well  as  four  pieces  of  board.  Put  the  boards  under  any  flat  heavy 
body  that  can  be  dragged  into  service.  For  this  purpose  an  old 
letter-copying  press  is  an  excellent  thing,  and  can  often  be  pur- 
chased for  a  few  shillings  ;  or  a  pair  of  good  strong  bolts,  say  |  in. , 
purchased  for  a  few  coppers,  can  be  fixed  in  two  stiff  pieces  of  wood 
to  make  a  very  efficient  press.     (See  Fig.  14.) 


Fig.   14. 


When  the  boards  are  well  set — they  should  be  left  for  at  least 
twenty-four  hours — open  them  at  the  unglued  edge,  insert  the 
muslin  and  tapes,  push  well  up  to  the  back  and  mark  off  equal 
margins  on  the  "  front,"  "  head,"  and  "  tail  "  (the  technical  names 
for  the  open  side,  top,  and  bottom  of  the  book).  For  width  of 
margin  a  projection  equal  to  the  thickness  of  the  boards  is  a  safe 
rule  to  follow.  Take  off  the  boards  and  trim  the  edges,  making 
them  clean  and  square.  Now  paste  the  inside  of  the  split  boards 
and  the  muslin  and  insert  again,  watching  carefully  the  margins. 
Do  not  push  the  boards  right  up  to  the  back,  but  leave  about  J  in. 
space  for  a  hinge.  (See  Fig.  15.)  Put  the  book  into  the  press 
and  leave  it  to  set. 

Prepare  the  cloth,  linen,  leatherette,  paper,  or  leather — whichever 
is  to  be  used — for  covering  the  back  and  corners  for  a  "  half-bound  " 
book,  or  the  whole  surface  of  the  boards  for  a  "whole"  or  "  full- 
bound  "  book.    Suppose  the  "  half-bound  "  book  is  taken.    Measure 


30 


BOOKBINDING. 


the  length  of  the  book  and  add  about  1  in.  ;  this  can  be  taken  as 
the  length  of  the  cloth  for  the  back.  The  width  will  vary  according 
to  the  size  of  the  book,  and  it  must  be  proportionate  to  the  width 
of  the  back.  Consider,  say,  an  8  in.  by  6  in.  cover.  Then  the 
cloth  might  be  extended  from  the  "  back  "  on  to  one  of  the  boards 
for  about  l^  in.,  passed  round  the  "  back  "  and  on  to  the  opposite 


Fig.   15. 


^/usJlh.  aixJ  lo/jfLi 


board  a  like  distance.  The  size  of  the  corner  pieces  will  vary  in 
the  same  way.  To  set  out  the  corner  pieces,  settle  the  distance 
from  the  corner  that  the  cloth  will  extend  when  fixed,  add  |  in. 
on  to  this  for  overlap  inside,  and  cut  out  a  square  of  cloth  to  the 
size  thus  obtained.  For  an  8  in.  by  6  in.  book,  the  square  might 
be  3  in.  Cut  into  two  parts  across  the  diagonal  and  take  off  the 
corner  in  a  line  parallel  to  the  diagonal.     (See  Fig.  16.) 


Fig.   16. 

The  corners  and  back-cover  are  now  ready  for  pasting  on.  Take 
the  book  out  of  the  press,  file  off  the  back  edge  of  the  cardboard 
to  do  away  with  the  abrupt  line  of  junction,  sht  the  muslin  at  both 
sides  of  the  "head"  and  "tail"  for  a  distance  of  about  J. in.  to 


SMALL   SECTION    BOOKS. 


31 


allow  the  cloth  to  be  turned  in  on  itself.  Both  children  and  adults 
are  sorely  tempted  here  to  cut  the  cloth  in  order  to  turn  it  over 
the  head  of  the  book.  By  cutting  at  the  head  all  chances  of  a  good 
finish  are  absolutely  lost.  Instead  of  cutting  the  cloth,  the  muslin 
is  cut  as  shown  in  Fig.  17.  Paste  the  cloth  back  piece  and  corner 
pieces  ;    fix  the  latter,  first  rubbing  them  well  down  on  the  face. 


Fig.   17. 


leaving  such  a  margin  as  will  ensure  a  good  close  mitre  ^  on  the  inside 
when  the  cloth  is  turned  over  the  edge  and  on  to  the  inner  face 
of  the  board.  The  four  corners  done,  the  back  cloth  may  be  put 
on  and  rubbed  well  down  on  to  the  back.  Now  stand  the  book 
on  its  end,  draw  the  cloth  away  from  the  top  of  the  board,  double 
the  projecting  part  back  on  itself,  at  the  same  time  putting  it 
through  the  slits  in  the  muslin,  over  the  edges  of  the  boards,  and 
on  to  the  inside.     Repeat  at  the  other  end,  and  then  leave  to  set. 

The  space  between  the  corners  and  the  back  cover  can  now  be 
covered  with  paper  to  match  the  colour  of  the  cloth,  laid  well  down 
on  to  the  boards,  the  edges  being  turned  over,  and  having  a  margin 
inside  of  about  |  in.  The  shape  of  the  "  filling  in  "  pieces  of  paper 
can  most  easily  be  found  by  placing  the  sheet  from  which  the  piece 

^  A  mitre  is  a  joint  in  which  the  edges  of  the  cloth  meet  at  an  angle  of  45°. 


32 


BOOKBINDING. 


is  to  be  cut  inside  the  book,  immediately  underneath  the  board. 
(See  Fig.  18.)  The  joint  between  the  leather  or  cloth  and  the  cloth 
or  paper  covering  must  be  that  known  as  "  butt "  {i.e.,  the  edges  of 
cloth  and  paper  exactly  meet  to  form  a  line).  An  overlap  of  paper 
does  not  improve  the  appearance  of  the  finished  cover. 


Fig.   18. 


In  small  books  {e.g.,  Imp.  16mo),  there  is  not  much  room  for 
corners,  and  it  is  a  question  whether  they  give  so  pleasing  a  result 
as  the  method,  now  adopted  by  many  bookbinders,  of  covering 
with  paper  the  whole  of  the  board  not  covered  by  the  cloth  at  the 
back.  There  is  no  doubt  that  the  plain  rectangular  surfaces  lend 
themselves  more  easily  to  suitable  decoration. 

Now  paste  back  the  end-papers,  handling  the  book  very  carefully 
the  while,  insert  zinc  plates,  front  and  back,  put  it  into  the  press, 
and  leave  it  to  set.  When  it  is  set,  leave  it  for  two  or  three  days, 
if  possible,  but  for  at  least  twenty-four  hours,  and  then  open  it 
carefully  by  placing  it  closed  on  a  table,  opening  a  few  pages  from 
the  front  and  then  a  few  from  the  back,  and  so  on  until  the  middle 
is  reached.     Do  not  open  a  book  straightway  at  or  near  the  middle. 

Now,  all  these  operations  sound  as  if  there  would  be  a  necessity 
for  a  tremendous  amount  of  demonstration  by  the  teacher.  As 
in  all  other  occupations,  so  in  bookbinding,  there  are  quick  workers 
and  "  others."  Therefore,  very  soon  a  stage  is  reached  when  a 
large  number  of  different  operations  are  going  on  at  the  same  time. 
The  writer  has  found  it  necessary  to  demonstrate  only  to  the  leaders 
as  a  small  group,  or  to  the  leader  alone.  When  the  need  for  some 
assistance  is  felt  by  the  next  child,  the  leader  then  becomes  a  teacher. 
He  demonstrates  to  his  neighbour,  who  in  turn,  when  requested 
by  some  other,  at  the  suggestion  of  the  teacher,  lends  his  aid.  Here 
we  have  a  fine  opportunity  for  the  development  of  a  realisation 


SMALL   SECTION    BOOKS.  33 

of  one's  duty  to  one's  neighbour,  for  the  creation  of  an  environment 
in  which  every  individual  in  a  group  meets  with  others  whose 
development  he  assists,  or  upon  whose  strength  he  is  dependent. 

Where  work  is  being  done  for  the  school  there  is  a  still  stronger 
development  of  this  principle,  because  a  well  or  ill-finished  article 
is  a  matter  of  consequence  to  the  whole  clasS' — to  us  instead  of  to 
me — and  woe  betide  any  one  who  does  not  tackle  his  share  of  the 
work  fairly  and  squarely,  and  do  it  to  the  best  of  his  powers. 

A  large  number  of  operations  are  moving  at  the  same  time,  and 
it  is  an  advantage  to  the  weaker  workers  to  know  exactly  what  is 
to  be  the  next  operation,  and  what  the  final  result.  Considerable 
freedom  of  movement  should  be  allowed,  in  order  that  slow  children 
may  see  what  is  being  done  by  the  quicker  ones,  and  ask  their 
advice.  This  helps  to  clear  the  vision  and  develop  the  foresight 
of  the  former,  and  to  strengthen  and  make  sure  the  power  and 
knowledge  of  the  latter. 

The  above  method  is  most  helpful  to  teachers  who  are  taking 
this  subject  with  large  classes.  The  class  can  be  split  up  into 
groups  with  one  or  two  of  the  most  advanced  children  as  leaders 
of  each  group.  These  leaders  are  given  the  privilege  of  helping 
and  supervising  the  work  of  the  members  of  their  group.  In  this 
way  the  work  of  teaching  a  class  of  forty  children  may  be 
considerably  lightened. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

BINDING   THICKER    BOOKS. 

We  now  come  to  the  more  complex  binding  of  thicker  books. 
This  can  be  very  well  done  by  the  children  of  the  fifth,  sixth  and 
seventh  standards  of  the  elementary  school,  and  the  junior  forms 
of  the  secondary  school. 


Fig.   19. 


The  books  are  obtained  from  all  quarters — magazines  from  home, 
old  books  apparently  beyond  repair,  school  books  in  need  of  repair 
and   reconstruction,   magazines  bought   or  given   for  school  use, 

34 


BINDING   THICKER    BOOKS. 


35 


Fig.   20  (a) 


Fig.  20(6). 


BINDING   THICKER    BOOKS.  37 

portfolios  for  nature  study  and  camera  work,  etc.  Plenty  of  work 
can  be  found,  and,  what  is  more,  it  is  work  which  is  waiting  to  be 
done — no  teacher-suggested  or  imposed  model  this  ! 

A  word  of  caution  is  necessary  here.  Some  children  may  bring 
very  old  books,  the  sections  of  which  are  folio  sheets,  i.e.,  two  leaves 
to  a  section.  The  book  may  be  cord-sewn  and  very  solidly  put 
together.  When  the  backs  are  cut  off  and  breaking-down  is 
commenced,  it  is  too  late  to  find  that  the  work  of  breaking-down, 
repairing,  and  re-binding  is  utterly  beyond  the  powers  of  a  child. 
It  is  advisable  for  the  teacher  to  examine  most  carefully  a  very 
old  book,  and  endeavour  to  find  out  exactly  how  well,  or  how 
badly,  it  is  made.  Children  do  not  possess  unhmited  patience, 
and  it  is  better  that  the  child  should  be  disappointed  at  once,  for 
a  short  time,  than  allowed  to  start  on  a  piece  of  work  which  will 
ultimately  make  him  dread  the  approach  of  the  lesson.  Some  of 
these  old  books  illustrate  well  the  patience  of  the  bookbinder. 

Our  first  need  is  a  stitching-frame.  Any  simple  affair  consisting 
of  three  sticks  and  a  table  will  do.  If  there  is  a  woodwork  room 
connected  with  the  school,  well  and  good ;  the  boys  will  each  put 
together  a  couple  of  stitching-frames  in  one  lesson.  Three  pieces 
of  one-inch  square  white  wood,  two  about  9  in.  long  and  the  third 
about  6  in.  longer  than  the  book  to  be  bound,  and  a  piece  of  three- 
ply  wood — ^say  from  a  tea-chest — of  about  the  length  of  the  third 
piece  of  wood,  are  all  that  is  necessary,  arranged  as  in  Fig.  19. 
Feet  may  be  added. 

A  chair  seat  and  the  cross-rail  in  the  back,  and  a  stool  with  a 
cross-rail  between  the  legs,  placed  upside  down,  make  quite  efficient 
stitching-frames  ;  or  again,  two  upright  pieces  attached  to  the 
edge  of  a  deal  table-top,  and  crossbar  fixed  as  in  Fig.  19,  will 
answer  the  purpose  just  as  well  as  the  most  expensive  frame  with 
upright  screws,  movable  crossbar,  and  wood  nuts.  See  photographs 
in  Figs.  20  (a)  and  20  (6). 

The  stitching-frame  having  been  obtained,  the  book  to  be  bound 
must  be  considered.  Is  it  in  "  parts  " — as  a  weekly  or  monthly 
magazine  ?  Is  it  an  old  book  to  be  rebound,  or  a  totally  new  book 
such  as  an  album  ?  Let  us  suppose  it  to  be  one  of  the  first  class, 
e.g.,  the  Children's  Encyclopaedia.  The  first  operation  is  the 
breaking-down  of  the  parts.  These  are  wire-stitched,  i.e.,  fastened 
together  with  wire  staples,  and  there  is  an  outer  cover  fastened 
on  to  the  back  edge  of  the  part  by  means  of  glue.  Take  out  the 
staples  very  carefully,  so  as  to  avoid  tearing  any  leaves,  wet  the 
backs  to  soften  the  glue,  and  take  the  part  to  pieces,  called  "  sec- 
tions." Break  down  the  number  of  parts  required  to  make  up  one 
volume.  If  in  any  other  book  the  sections  are  stitched  together, 
carefully  cut  the  stitching  in  the  middle  of  each  section.  Do  not 
attempt  to  bind  parts  without  breaking  them  down  into  sections. 


38 


BOOKBINDING. 


There  may  be  a  savinj::  of  time,  but  tlie  result  will  be  far  from 
satisfactory. 

At  the  bottom  left-haiul  corner  of  each  section  will  be  found  a 
letter  or  number.  Thus,  the  first  page  of  the  first  section  in  the 
first  part  might  be  indexed  A  or  1  ;  the  first  page  of  the  second 
section  would  be  lettered  or  numbered  B  or  2  ;  and  so  on  through 
all  the  sections  forming  the  volume.  If  there  are  more  sections 
than  letters  in  the  alphabet  (by  the  way,  the  letter  J  is  generally 
omitted),  then  a  start  is  again  made  at  the  beginning  of  the  alphabet 
with  the  addition  of  the  figure  1.  These  figures  and  letters  enable 
us  to  arrange  the  sections  in  their  proper  order.  The  process  is 
termed  "  collating  " — gathering  and  placing  in  order. 

All  glue  must  be  cleaned  off  the  back  of  each  section  with  a  bone 
folder  or  a  knife.  In  doing  this  it  is  quite  likely  that  some  paper 
will  be  torn  away,  and  necessitate  the  repair  of  the  sections  so 
damaged.     This  brings  in  another  operation,  that  of  "  guarding." 


Fig.  21. 


This  consists  in  pasting  strips  of  very  thin  strong  paper,  about 
I  in.  wide,  on  to  the  back  of  the  section,  or  the  pair  of  leaves  to  be 
repaired,  the  paper  extending  |  in.  on  each  side  of  the  fold.  These 
guards  should  be  made  a  little  longer  than  the  sections,  and  cut  off 
flush  when  well  set.  The  corn-flour  paste  described  on  page  17 
is  the  best  to  use  for  this  purpose,  as  ordinary  paste  is  apt  to  leave 
dirty  stains. 

Repair  all  sections  that  are  damaged,  keeping  the  collation 
correct  all  the  time. 

We  are  now  ready  for  the  end-papers,  which  should  always  be 
stitched,  not  stuck,  into  the  book.  Obtain  a  sheet  of  paper  to 
match  the  paper  of  the  book,  and  about  1  in.  longer  than  a  double 
page.  Fold  this  down  the  middle  ;  then  draw  a  line  parallel  to 
the  centre  line  about  |  in.  from  it,  and  on  the  opposite  side  a  similar 
line  (Fig.  21).  Run  down  these  lines  with  a  bone  folder  and  fold 
up  as  in  Fig.  22.  Now  take  a  double  sheet  of  coloured,  plain,  or 
marbled  paper,  according  to  taste  but  matching  the  colour  of  the 
cloth,  leather,  etc.,  to  be  used.     Fold  this  sheet  down  the  middle, 


BINDING   THICKER    BOOKS. 


39 


and  paste  it  on  to  the  first  sheet  as  shown  in  Fig.  23.  Two  end- 
papers arranged  in  this  way  will  be  required,  one  for  the  front 
and  one  for  the  back.  An  additional  double  page  may  be  put  in 
on  the  other  side  of  the  flange  ;  this  will  be  stitched,  not  stuck  in. 

Prepare  now  for  stitching.     For  beginners  the  simplest  method 
is  stitching  on  tapes.     Take  the  frame,  arrange  the  sections  on  the 


Fig.  22. 


Fig.  23. 

board,  perfectly  upright  at  the  "  head  "  and  flat  at  the  "  back." 
In  order  to  get  this  regularity,  take  hold  of  the  book,  and  holding 
loosely,  let  it  drop  back  downwards  on  to  the  table.  This  will 
ensure  the  backs  of  all  the  sections  being  brought  into  one  plane. 
Do  the  same  with  the  "  head  "  of  the  book.  Set  up  the  sections 
on  the  table  of  the  sewing  frame  as  in  Fig.  24.     Arrange  a  tape 


Fig.  24. 


3 — (1042) 


40 


BOOKBINDING. 


in  the  middle  and  one  on  each  side  of  it  about  1 J  in.  from  the  head 
and  2i  in.  from  the  tail — the  exact  distance  depends  on  the  amount 
to  be  cut  off  the  head  and  tail.  Fix  the  tapes  at  the  top  to  the 
cross  bar,  and  at  the  other  end  underneath  the  board,  by  means 
of  drawing-pins.  Now  mark  with  pencil  on  the  backs  of  the  sections 
the  exact  positions  of  the  tapes  and  midway  between  the  top  tape 
and  the  head,  and  between  the  bottom  tape  and  the  tail,  drawing 
lines  to  represent  the  positions  of  the  kettle  stitches.  This  is  the 
name  given  to  the  stitch  used  to  connect  each  pair  of  adjacent 
sections.  Every  section  must  be  marked,  as  upon  the  correct 
working  to  line  depends  the  success  of  the  stitching,  and  of  the 
ultimate  result.  Take  the  sections  off  the  table.  We  are  now 
ready  for  the  stitching.  Take  a  3^ard  or  so  of  good  linen  thread, 
and  thread  the  needle.  Lay  down  the  first  end-paper  (Fig.  23), 
a  being  in  contact  with  the  board  and  against  the  tapes,  according 
to  the  lines  already  made.  Stitch  through  this  as  shown  in  Fig.  11 , 
which  is  a  plan  of  the  back  edge  of  the  end-paper  and  the  tapes. 


Fig.  25. 


The  line  of  stitches  must  be  placed  between  the  pair  of  leaves 
nearest  the  body  of  the  book  both  at  beginning  and  end. 

Now  lay  on  the  first  section,  the  front  or  title-page  adjacent  to  the 
top  sheet  of  the  end-paper.  Repeat  the  process  of  stitching  from 
left  to  right,  the  needle  finally  coming  out  exactly  above  the  point 
of  its  first  entry,  in  the  line  of  the  kettle-stitch.  This  thread,  and 
that  projecting  from  the  end-paper  must  be  tied  tightly  together 
(Fig.  25).  Put  on  the  second  section,  stitch  through  as  before 
from  right  to  left,  and  then  make  the  kettle-stitch  to  secure  the  two 
sections  together  at  this  end  (Fig.  26).  All  is  now  plain  sailing  to 
the  last  section  and  end-paper.  During  stitching,  every  three  or 
four  of  the  sections  may  be  caught  together  on  the  tapes  in  order 
that  the  whole  may  be  well  pulled  together  (Fig.  27). 

When  the  stitching  is  complete,  cut  the  tapes  about  2  in.  up  from 
the  top  of  the  book,  and  take  out  the  pins  at  the  bottom  end. 

If  the  directions  as  to  marking  off  the  positions  of  the  tapes 


BINDING  THICKER    BOOKS. 


41 


and  kettle-stitches  have  been  followed,  and  the  placing  of  the  sections 
carefully  done,  the  result  may  be  that  the  book  will  not  require 
cutting.  But  if  the  edges  are  uneven,  it  is  more  satisfactory  to 
cut  them  and  produce  even  and  clean  edges.  This  will  certainly 
result  in  much  less  annoyance  when  the  book  is  finished  and  in  use 
than  is  the  case  with  the  "  deckled  "  edge,  as  the  uncut  edge  is 
called. 


Fig.  26. 


Fig.  27. 


A  cutting-press  and  plough  are  perhaps  beyond  the  hope  of  any 
but  the  most  daring  requisitionist.  They  will  cost  at  least  30s., 
but  they  are  well  worth  it  in  labour  and  time  saved.  A  cutting- 
press  that  will  be  found  quite  effective  can  be  made  as  shown  in 
Fig.  28,  which  gives  working  drawings  of  a  press  designed  by  the 
author  and  most  successfully  made  by  many  of  the  students  in  his 


42 


BINDING   THICKER   BOOKS. 


43 


classes  for  teachers.  The  press  and  plough  are  separate  parts  of 
the  apparatus.  The  press  is  made  from  two  large  and  two  small 
pieces  of  wood  (either  beech  or  sycamore  is  best),  two  square-headed 
bolts  and  two  handles,  all  of  the  dimensions  given.  The  two  small 
pieces  of  wood  are  fixed  to  the  left-hand  large  piece  (see  Fig.  28  {b) ) 
and  form  a  track  along  which  the  plough  travels  when  in  use.  In 
the  piece  of  wood  that  carries  this  track,  two  holes  are  bored  through 
and  square  depressions  made.  The  bolts  are  passed  through  these 
holes  and  the  depressions  receive  the  square  bolt-heads.  These  holes 
should  be  bored  of  such  a  size  that  the  bolts  fit  tightly  into  them. 
In  the  other  large  piece  of  wood,  the  right-hand  piece  in  Fig.  28  {b) 
and  that  in  front  of  the  spectator  in  28  (a),  two  other  holes  are 
bored  of  such  a  size  and  in  such  a  position  that  the  bolts  pass  easily 


-Vlh 


A 


WL. 


\ 


kk 


i=^' 


^'h^\ 


Fig.  28  (b)  (Elevation) 


through  them.  Large  washers  are  put  on  each  bolt,  and  the  handles 
are  fixed  as  in  Fig.  28  {a).     The  press  is  then  ready  for  use. 

The  plough  should  be  made  of  the  same  kind  of  wood  as  the  press. 
It  consists  of  two  pieces  of  wood  (the  dimensions  of  which  can  be 
found  from  the  two  elevations  given)  for  the  sides  ;  two  bolts  to 
act  as  stays  ;  and  a  third  bolt,  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  length 
and  a  little  above  the  middle  of  the  height  of  the  upright  pieces  of 
wood,  to  be  used  as  a  handle  and  a  screw  for  feeding  up  the  knife, 
which  is  carried  in  the  right-hand  piece.     (See  Fig.  28  {b).) 

In  making  this  part  of  the  apparatus,  two  holes  are  bored  in  the 
left-hand  upright  piece  of  such  a  size  that,  when  the  steadying  bolts 
are  put  through,  they  will  fit  rather  tightly.  Corresponding  holes  are 
bored  in  the  right-hand  piece,  but  before  passing  the  bolts  through 


H-H-^ 


r 


t\ 


»=-c: 


^^^^ 


5"? 


-^ 


mR 


t-"-> 


\zz. 


^J:ES) 


^"^v 


_:'j_>  oi 


^j^j^ 


>- 


44 


BINDING  THICKER   BOOKS.  45 

these,  a  nut  is  screwed  on  to  each  bolt  for,  say,  a  distance  of  2|  in. 
Now  pass  the  bolts  through  the  holes  and  screw  other  nuts  to  the 
right-hand  ends.     Screw  up  so  that  the  nuts  nip  on  to  the  wood. 

Now  make  another  bolt-hole  in  the  left-hand  piece  to  take  the 
long-screw  bolt  to  be  used  as  a  handle.  This  hole  should  allow 
the  screwed  end  of  the  bolt  to  pass  through  easily.  Bore  a 
corresponding  hole  in  the  right-hand  piece. 

Now  make  a  rectangular  slot  from  the  top  of  the  left-hand  piece, 
wide  enough  to  receive  a  square  nut  and  of  sufficient  depth  to  allow 
the  bolt,  when  the  nut  is  in  position,  to  be  screwed  through.  Fix 
a  wooden  handle  on  to  the  unscrewed  end  of  the  bolt. 

Bore  a  vertical  hole  through  the  shank  of  the  bolt  about  If  in. 
from  the  end  of  the  handle,  and  pass  the  bolt  through  the  right- 
hand  piece. 

Drop  the  nut  into  the  slot  in  the  left-hand  piece  and  screw  the 
bolt  through.  Now  drive  an  iron  pin  tightly  into  its  hole  on  the 
left-hand  side  of  the  right-hand  piece.  (See  Fig.  28  {b).)  On 
turning  the  handle  it  will  be  found  that  the  right-hand  upright 
travels,  according  to  the  way  the  handle  is  turned,  either  away 
from  or  towards  the  left-hand  upright. 

The  cutting  knife  is  made  from  a  flat  piece  of  good  steel  {e.g.,  an 
old  chisel  ground  and  sharpened  to  shape  as  shown  in  Fig.  28  {d)  ) . 
To  fix  it,  a  dovetailed  slot  is  cut  in  the  sole  of  the  movable  upright, 
in  size  equal  to  the  thickness  and  width  of  the  knife.  Two  holes 
are  drilled  in  the  knife  and  countersunk  to  take  1  in.  flat-head 
iron  screws. 

Bore  holes  in  the  wood  to  receive  these  screws  and  fix  up.  The 
knife  must  be  very  often  taken  out  for  sharpening,  so  these  screws 
must  be  carefully  driven. 

The  following  arrangement  will  usually  be  found  to  answer 
quite  satisfactorily.  A  pair  of  9  in.  G  cramps,  a  piece  of  close- 
grained  hard  wood  about  a  foot  square  and  IJ  in.  thick,  with 
edges  trued,  a  piece  about  10  in.  by  1 J  in.  by  2  in.  with  two  adjacent 
sides  trued  up,  and  a  woodworker's  1  in.  chisel  are  the  requirements. 
Fix  up  as  shown  in  Fig.  30. 

In  fixing,  the  back  of  the  book  must  be  perfectly  ahned  with 
the  edge  of  the  board,  and  the  top  piece  of  wood  fixed  so  that  its 
true  edge  is  at  the  front  edge  of,  and  parallel  to  the  back  of,  the 
book.  Put  on  the  cramps  and  screw  up  as  tightly  as  possible. 
Proceed  to  cut  by  laying  the  back  edge  of  the  chisel  against  the 
face  of  the  fence,  and  draw  along,  pressing  evenly  and  firmly,  so 
as  to  cut  through  a  few  leaves  at  a  time.  Repeat  until  through  all. 
Unscrew  the  cramps,  turn  the  book  round,  and  fix  it  so  that  the 
head  is  at  right-angles  to  the  side  of  the  base  board  ;  fix  up  the 
fence  and  cramps  and  cut  the  leaves.  Repeat  for  the  tail  of  the 
book.     To  cut  a  thick  book  is  rather  a  laborious  process  for  a  boy, 


46 


BOOKBINDING. 


and  the  teacher  may  find  it  necessary  to  help,  but  for  thin  books 
there  is  no  physical  difhculty,  and  boj's  can  finish  these  quite  well. 

Rounding  and  glueing  the  back  is  the  next  operation.  It  is 
often  asked,  "  Why  are  book  backs  rounded  ?  "  The  answer  is 
simpl}'  this.  The  stitching  process  adds  thickness  by  the  addition 
both  of  the  strips  of  paper  with  which  the  sections  have  been 
repaired,  and  of  a  certain  amount  of  thread.  This  extra  thickness 
is  distributed  over  a  larger  surface  than  would  be  the  case  if  the 
back  were  kept  flat.  The  question  of  improved  appearance  we 
need  not  discuss. 

For  rounding  the  back  we  must  use  our  home-made  press — see 
Fig.  13  or  Fig.  28,  which  represents  it  in  a  reverse  position.  A 
pair  of  hardwood  boards  of  design  given  in  Fig.  29  will  be  required. 
Before  putting  the  book  in  the  press,  it  may  be  rounded  by  placing 


it  flat  on  a  table  with  the  fore-edge — the  open  side — facing  the  body. 
Now  press  the  fingers  of  the  left  hand  into  the  middle  of  the  fore- 
edge.  This  wnll  force  some  of  the  sections  out  at  the  back  into  the 
form  of  a  curve,  and  the  process  is  assisted  by  spreading  out  the 
fingers  of  the  right  hand  and  pulling  the  backs  of  the  top  half  of 
the  sections  towards  the  body.  The  back  will  now  have  the  top 
half  round  and  the  bottom  half  still  vertical.  Turn  over  the  book 
and  do  the  same  with  the  other  half.  Place  the  boards  as  shown 
in  Fig.  31,  put  the  book  and  boards  in  the  press,  taking  great 
care  that  the  arrangement  is  not  disturbed,  and  screw  up  fairly 
tightly. 

It  may  perhaps  be  found  necessary  to  take  it  out  and  correct 
it  two  or  three  times  before  satisfaction  is  obtained,  but  it  is  worth 
while  to  have  patience  and  so  secure  a  well-rounded  back.  Now 
apply  hot  glue,  not  too  thick  ;  brush  it  well  in,  then  rub  it  in 
with  the  fingers,  and  make  quite  sure  that  the  back  of  each  section 


47 


48 


BOOKBINDING. 


is  coated  full  length.  Leave  the  glue  to  set  until  it  is  just  past  the 
"  tacky  "  stage,  i.e.,  until  the  fingers  will  just  not  stick.  When  the 
book  is  ready  for  hammering,  a  cobbler's  hammer  is  a  good  sub- 
stitute for  a  bookbinder's  hammer,  which  is  rather  expensive,  or 
an  ordinary  woodworker's  hammer  with  a  slightly  rounded  face 
may  be  made  to  serve.  Screw  up  tightly  as  possible  ;  hammer 
lightly,  and,  as  the  aim  is  to  fan  out  the  sections  from  the  middle 
to  each  side,  the  blows  must  be  placed  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow 
marks  in  Fig.  31.     Hammer  over  to  an  even  curve,  and  leave  to 


set,  say,  twenty-four  hours.  In  the  meantime,  prepare  the  boards 
as  already  described,  and,  when  the  book  is  ready,  attach  them 
and  finish  with  cloth  or  leather  and  paper  as  before.  Put  the 
finished  book  under  pressure  for  a  day  or  two.  With  children  it 
is  generally  advisable  to  glue  and  round  the  back  of  the  book  before 
cutting.  This  makes  it  much  easier  for  the  child  to  fix  up  for 
cutting,  but  it  is  necessary  to  knock  the  "  back  "  flat  before  fixing, 
and  to  retain  this  flatness  during  that  operation.  When  the 
"  front  "  is  cut  and  the  book  taken  out  of  the  press,  the  back 
recovers  its  roundness,  and  so  shows  the  hollow  front  edge. 


CHAPTER   V. 

SEWING   ON    CORDS. 

Some  books,  it  will  be  observed,  have  raised  semi-cylindrical  bands 
on  the  backs.  These  books  may  or  may  not  (sometimes  the  bands 
are  simply  stuck  in  for  effect)  be  sewn  on  cords  instead  of  on  tapes. 
The  arrangement  of  the  stitches  is  different  from  that  used  in  tape 
sewing.     (See  Fig.  32.)     Instead  of  three  tapes,  fiv  •  cords  are  used, 


-i    <s>     (^      <s>      ($>      «     JL 

Fig.  32. 

the  attachment  to  the  stitching-frame  being  exactly  the  same  as 
in  the  former  case.  In  stitching,  be  careful  to  keep  the  cords 
square  across  the  back.  There  is  a  special  hempen  cord  for  this 
work,  but,  provided  that  the  fibre  is  long,  any  string  may  be  used. 
Rounding  the  back  follows  cutting,  etc.,  as  in  the  tape  sewing. 
The  boards  are  prepared  as  before,  except  that  the  two  thin  boards 
which  make  one  are  glued  all  over  and  stuck  together.  Strong 
boards  of  single  thickness  may  also  be  used  with  advantage.  Holes 
are  then  punched  through  each  board  as  in  Fig.  33.  The  first  line 
of  holes  is  about  I  in.,  and  the  second  line  1  in.  from  the  back  ;  the 
first  line  opposite  the  cords,  the  second  a  little  to  one  side.  A 
groove  should  be  cut  from  the  back  edge  to  each  hole  in  the  first 
line.  This  will  allow  the  cord  to  be  made  level  with  the  surface 
of  the  board.  Each  of  the  second  Hne  of  holes  must  be  gouged  out 
to,  say,  half  the  thickness  of  the  board.     (Again  see  Fig.  33.) 

On  taking  the  cord-sewn  book  out  of  the  stitching-frame,  the 
ends  are  cut  off  about  2  in.  from  the  book,  just  as  in  the  tape-sewn 
book.  Fray  out  these  ends  with  a  bodkin  or  any  such  sharp-pointed 
tool,  and  reduce  their  bulk  a  little  so  that  the  ends  may  be  worked 
up  to  points.  Paste  these  fibrous  slips  and  work  to  a  point  by 
twisting  them  at  the  tips.  Thread  through  a  hole  in  the  first  line, 
passing  in  on  the  top  surface,  beneath  the  board,  and  then  out  at  the 
second  hole  (Fig.  34).     Cut  off  about  J  in.  from  the  surface  of  the 

49 


50 


BOOKBINDING. 


board,  and  hammer  well  down,  resting  the  board  on  some  hard 
surface,  an  iron  block  being  best.  When  hammered  flat,  the  cords 
should  fill  the  grooves  to  the  first,  and  the  conical  depressions  round 
the  second  line  of  holes. 


@        @        @         ®        @ 


Fig.  33. 


Fig. 


Take  care  that  the  hammer  falls  square,  or  the  cords  will  be  cut. 
When  covering  with  leather  the  back  of  a  book  sewn  on  cords,  it 
is  necessary  to  rub  the  paste  well  into  the  leather  and  leave  it  to 


SEWING   ON    CORDS.  51 

soak  for  a  little  while.  This  makes  the  leather  much  easier  to 
work,  and  is  necessary  in  order  that,  when  being  fixed  to  the  boards, 
it  may  be  modelled  down  upon  the  cords.  This  modelling  requires 
considerable  digital  strength,  and  may  be  beyond  the  physical 
powers  of  most  children.  Experience  will  help  one  to  a  decision. 
Nip  up  the  bands  to  make  them  sharp  and  square  across  the  back, 
having  previously  slightly  softened  the  rounded  back  with  a  coating 
of  paste.  Put  the  book  in  the  press,  allowing  the  back  to  project 
about  3  in.  Take  the  leather,  place  it  carefully  so  that  the  book- 
back  is  exactly  in  the  centre  of  its  length  and  width,  press  the  leather 
firmly  to  one  side  and  draw  the  loose  part  over  the  back,  pulling 
slightly.  Press  down  on  the  second  side.  Stretch  the  leather 
a  little  lengthways,  press  down  again  and  model  firmly  to  the  back 
and  the  bands  with  the  fingers  and  a  flat  bone  or  boxwood  folder, 
working  any  superfluous  leather  into  the  sides.  Using  the  pliers, 
nip  the  leather  on  the  bands,  preventing,  with  the  fingers  of  the  left 
hand,  any  tendency  to  pull  away  from  other  parts.  Rub  well  down 
in  every  part  to  ensure  the  attachment  of  all  the  leather,  turn  in  at 
the  head  and  tail  as  before.  Leave  to  set,  and  then  fit  the  corners 
and  covering  paper  or  cloth,  and  finish.  For  work  with  children 
it  is  better  to  use  thin  leathers.  This  does  away  with  the  need 
for  paring,  a  difficult  operation  for  young  fingers.  The  edges  of 
the  leather  may  be  thinned  down  by  means  of  coarse  glass-paper 
wrapped  round  a  flat  piece  of  wood  and  apphed  to  the  wrong  or 
flesh  side  of  the  leather. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

WHOLE    BINDING   AND   CASE    BINDING. 

"  Whole  "  binding  may  be  done  in  cloth  or  linen.  Leather  is 
too  expensive  for  "  whole  "  binding  in  school.  Where  girls  are 
being  taught,  many  beautiful  effects  can  be  obtained  by  previously 
embroidering  some  appropriate  design  on  linen,  etc.  In  arranging 
any  such  design,  care  must  be  taken  to  ensure  the  correct  placing 
of  the  ornament  on  the  cover.  When  these  covers  are  to  be  put 
on,  it  is  best  not  to  round  the  back  of  the  book,  but  to  leave  it  flat 
and  cover  it  with  a  piece  of  stiff  paper,  cut  to  the  width  of  the  back. 
A  piece  of  thin  card,  of  exactly  the  same  width  as  the  paper  itself 
and  just  about  the  same  length  as  the  book,  is  pasted  and  stuck  on 
to  the  exact  centre  of  the  embroidered  cover.  (See  Fig.  35.)  Do 
not  use  more  paste  than  is  absolutely  necessary,  as  it  is  hkely  to 
work  through  the  texture  of  the  material  and  perhaps  spoil  the 
work  placed  on  it.  The  writer  has  found  the  following  method 
very  effective  for  dealing  with  fabric  covers. 


Fig.  35. 


Brush  a  coating  of  hot  thin  glue  over  the  boards  and  back  of  the 
book,  and  leave  it  to  set  until  the  "  tacky  "  stage  is  reached.  Lay 
a  pad  of  cotton  wool  so  as  to  cover  the  outside  of  each  board,  fitting 
over  the  head,  front  and  tail  edges  just  enough  to  "  soften  "  them, 
i.e.,  to  do  away  with  the  hard  sharp  line  of  the  edges  of  the  boards. 
The  outside  edges  of  the  boards  may  be  softened  by  rounding  off 
with  a  file.  Take  the  covering  cloth,  with  the  piece  of  thin  card  in 
position  ;  place  it  with  the  card  centrally  down  the  back  of  the 
book,  rub  very  lightly,  but  so  as  to  ensure  good  attachment,  glue 
the  inside  of  the  boards  for  about  |  in.  or  |  in.  all  round,  and  leave 
it  till  just  "  tacky  "  as  before.  Now  pull  the  cloth  gently  but  firmly 
over  the  back,  turn  in  the  edges  and  rub  them  well  down  on  to 
the  glued  portions  of  the  boards.     Repeat  on  the  opposite  side  and 

52 


WHOLE    BINDING   AND   CASE    BINDING. 


53 


leave  to  set.  When  set,  paste  the  end  papers  back,  insert  a  zinc 
plate  at  each  end,  close  the  book,  put  it  under  a  light  weight  and 
leave  it  to  set. 

Case  Binding. 

It  may  sometimes  be  desirable  to  put  only  a  paper  or  some  other 
kind  of  temporary  cover  on  to  a  properly  stitched,  or  wire-stitched 
book,  or  the  covers  for  a  certain  publication  may  be  supplied 
ready-made.  This  class  of  work  is  known  as  "  case-binding,"  and 
is  the  usual  kind  employed  on  cheap  editions. 

After  stitching,  cut  the  tapes,  glue  the  back,  cut  the  edges,  and 
fix  the  muslin  to  the  tapes,  but  not  to  the  waste  paper  as  explained 
in  Chapter  II.  If  a  paper  cover  is  to  be  attached,  set  out  the  size 
and  cut  it  out.  Paste  a  4  in.  strip  down  the  middle  of  the  inside 
surface  of  the  cover.  Take  the  book,  place  the  back  carefully  on 
the  centre  of  the  cover  and  press  down.  Press  the  muslin  carefully 
back  on  to  the  cover,  rub  well  down,  and  leave  it  to  set.  Paste 
the  remaining  part  of  the  cover,  turn  back  the  end-papers,  rub  well 
down  and  again  leave  to  set. 

When  ready-made  cardboard  covers  are  to  be  attached,  the 
centre  back  is  not  pasted.  Paste  a  margin  on  each  side  of  the 
centre  back  to  receive  the  muslin  and  tapes.  Press  back  the  muslin 
as  before  and  leave  to  set  ;   then  fix  the  end-papers. 

Single  boards  may  be  attached  on  this  principle  by  placing  a 
piece  of  waste  paper  under  the  muslin,  rubbing  hot  glue  on  to  the 
latter  and  then  carefully  adjusting  the  board  in  position.  Leave 
about  i  in.  space  between  the  back  of  the  book  and  the  edge  of  the 
board.  Rub  well  down,  repeat  on  the  other  side,  leave  to  set  and 
finish  as  before. 

A  Book-cover. 

A  simple  book-cover  may  be  made  as  shown  in  Fig.  36.  This 
may  be  made  in  silk,  linen,  cahco,  bookbinders'  cloth  or  leather 


»___0-_ 


o"xr 


Lj O  _  _>^ 


Fig.  36. 


54  BOOKBINDING. 

and  ornamented  in  silks,  wool,  cotton,  or  oil  or  water-colour,  and 
is  very  useful  for  keeping  a  good  book-back  clean. 

The  size  will  depend  on  the  size  of  the  book  to  be  covered  and 
should  be  about  J  in.  longer  than  the  book.  Tlie  middle  portion 
to  cover  the  back  of  the  book  should  be  about  i  in.  wider  than  the 
tliickness,  and  the  distance  from  the  vertical  line  XX  to  the  line 
of  the  hinge  about  i  in.  wider  than  that  of  the  corresponding 
dimension  on  the  book. 

Of  the  overlaps,  ABXX  should  be  about  |  in.  and  CDXX 
about  2|  in.  wide. 

From  the  measurements  obtained  in  this  way  set  out  as 
follows — 

Turn  AB  over  on  XX  and  stitch  it  down.  Turn  CD  over  on 
XX  and  stitch  along  XO,  leaving  CD  open  to  receive  the  cover 
of  the  book. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

THE     CONNECTION     BETWEEN     BOOKBINDING     AND     OTHER 
SCHOOL   SUBJECTS. 

There  is  a  great  deal  written  of  the  connection  of  Art  to  Handwork, 
and  to  Bookbinding  in  particular.  The  writer  is  quite  well  aware 
of  the  value  of  Handwork  as  a  means  of  teaching  the  fundamentals 
of  many  school  subjects,  but  there  are  schools  where  no  use  whatever 
is  made  of  Handwork  as  a  general  school  method,  where  it  is  not  used 
to  help  in  teaching  other  school  subjects.  Such  schools  deal  with 
the  work  merely  as  one  of  the  subjects  in  the  curriculum — a  cur- 
riculum, it  may  be,  which  is  cut  up  into  so  many  self-contained 
compartments  that  no  overlapping  of  subjects  is  allowed. 

It  is  often  left  to  the  teachers  of  the  special  "  hand  and  eye  " 
subjects  to  make  any  connection  they  care  to  make  with  one 
another's  work.  The  correlation  of  Handwork  and  Art  is,  perhaps, 
the  most  easily  accomplished,  and  of  greater  value  than  can  be 
secured  in  most  other  combinations.  A  few  minutes  weekly  spent 
in  conference  between  the  Handwork  and  Art  Masters  will  be  most 
valuable  and  stimulating.  Both  must  be  prepared  to  give  and 
take.  Through  such  conversations  the  children  can  be  made  to 
see  the  connection  between,  and  the  direct  apphcation  of,  what 
is  learned  in  various  subjects.  Their  outlook  on  particular  subjects 
is  considerably  broadened.  Their  ideas  of  "  fitness,"  "  finish," 
"  proportion,"  and  "  balance  "  are  developed. 

As  a  simple  illustration  of  what  may  be  done  in  this  direction, 
let  us  take  a  case  where  it  was  the  original  intention  on  the  part 
of  a  child  to  "  half-bind  "  a  book,  with  corners  of  the  same  material 
as  the  back.  The  result  is  a  shape  that  is,  for  a  beginner,  rather 
awkward  to  fill  with  a  design.  The  child  may,  or  may  not,  have 
reached  that  stage  in  design  when  his  power  is  sufficient  for  him 
to  arrange  a  pattern  on  such  a  space  ;  in  fact,  he  may  not  be  past 
the  stage  of  designing  for  rectangles.  It  is  sufficient  for  the  Art 
Teacher  to  suggest  that  it  would  be  better  for  the  child's  develop- 
ment in  design  if  the  cloth  corners  were  omitted,  producing  rectangu- 
lar spaces.  From  the  bookbinding  point  of  view  the  effect  is  quite 
as  good,  if  not  better.  The  child  has  not  lost  anything  fundamental 
and  has  gained  considerably  in  Art.  Bookbinding  has  gained  in 
addition  because  the  child  learns  something  further  about  "  finish." 

Designs  may  be  arranged  and  cut  for  use  as  stencil-plates  to  be 
apphed  to  all  kinds  of  bindings  in  fabrics  (Fig.  38).  There  is  a 
very  wide  scope  in  materials  for  this  work.  Children  in  the  writer's 
classes  have  brought  coarse  canvas,  Harriss  linen,  corduroy,  calico, 

4— (1042)  ^^ 


56 


BOOKBINDING. 


velvet,  and  cot t (in  ;  all  have  been  most  successfully  used  in  tlie 
way  described,  and  many  have  been  very  prettily  decorated.  The 
great  point  here  is  that  the  child  is  making  use  of  apparently  waste 
materials,  and  is  making  them  up  into  something  of  decided  value. 
There  is  a  great  principle  involved  in  this  idea,  and  the  stronger 
its  application  in  all  work,  the  better  the  training  in  true  economy 
for  our  future  citizens. 

Many  schools  do  work  in  modelling  metals — foil  brass,  copper, 
and  aluminium.  There  are  arguments  against  the  use  of  these 
materials  as  substitutes  for  linen,  leather,  or  paper  in  panelling 
book-backs.  There  is  always  the  possibility  that  the  metal  on  the 
back  of  a  book  may,  when  the  book  is  put  into  the  shelves,  scratch 
the  covers  of  adjacent  books,  and  again,  that  high  relief  may  be 


Fig.  37. 

crushed  down.  Avoid  high  relief.  Back  up  the  raised  parts  with 
a  gesso  mixture  of  glue  and  whiting  or  plaster  of  Paris ;  or  coat  the 
back  of  the  raised  part  with  glue,  fill  the  depression  with  sawdust, 
and  then  brush  a  coating  of  glue  on  a  piece  of  stiff  paper  and  fix 
down  so  as  to  hold  in  the  sawdust. 

The  corners  of  the  boards  may  be  covered  with  metal.  The  shape 
is  exactly  the  same  as  in  Fig.  16.  Some  simple  design  may  be 
traced  on  them  and  worked  by  means  of  a  bone  folder,  outlining 
on  the  face  and  modelling  from  the  back.  The  work  may  be 
modelled  on  a  thick  pad  of  blotting  paper.  The  metal  is  fixed  on 
to  the  boards  by  means  of  an  overlap,  as  in  the  case  of  cloth  or 
leather  corners,  and  two  or  three  small  pins,  driven  in  from  the  face 
through  the  metal  and  board  and  clinched  inside.     (See  Fig.  37.) 

A  panel  of  metal  may  be  fixed  on  to  the  cover  of  a  "  whole-bound  " 
book  as  in  Fig.  43.     This  can  be  kept  quite  flush  with  the  leather 


BOOKBINDING    AND    OTHER    SCHOOL   SUBJECTS. 


57 


BOOKBINDING   AND   OTHER   SCHOOL   SUBJECTS.  59 

cover  by  making  a  depression  in  the  cardboard  back.  This  depres- 
sion, with  the  thickness  of  the  covering  leather  should  be  deep 
enough  to  receive  the  full  depth  of  the  relief  on  the  metal,  and  so 
prevent  both  the  crushing  down  of  the  modelhng  and  damage  to 
other  books  on  the  shelf.     The  panel  can  be  fixed  with  pins. 

Some  simple  decoration  in  leather  can  be  carried  out  by  means 
of  a  bone  folder.  By  rubbing  the  thin  edge  of  a  folder  along  the 
edge  of  a  ruler  laid  on  the  piece  of  leather  to  be  decorated,  dark 
indented  lines  are  produced.  These  can  be  used  to  emphasize  the 
tapes  and  cords  on  the  back,  and  for  "  lining  "  the  corner  pieces 
or  the  edges  of  the  leather  covering  the  boards.  On  curved  backs, 
sharp  black  lines  can  be  produced  by  means  of  a  piece  of  thin 
string  pulled  quicklj^  from  side  to  side  across  the  back.  (See  Fig.  39.) 
If  the  folder  or  string  is  moistened  slightly  when  used,  sharper 
effects  are  produced. 


This  operation  is  called  "  bhnd-tooling,"  and  any  child  can  do  it. 
Fig.  44  is  an  example  of  this  class  of  work  and  can  be  executed  by 
fixing  the  design  to  the  book-back  and  going  over  all  the  lines  with 
the  point  of  a  bone  folder.  This  transfers  the  design  to  the  leather. 
Take  off  the  paper,  and  then,  slightly  moistening  the  lines  of  the 
design,  go  over  again  with  the  folder.  This  depresses  the  design 
still  further  and  sharpens  the  whole  effect.  The  writer  has  seen,  in 
an  elementary  school,  one  or  two  splendid  examples  of  blind-tooling. 
Another  mode  of  decoration  is  that  known  as  "  cut  work  in  leather." 
This  style  is  most  suitable  for  whole-bound  books.  The  design 
is  transferred  to  tracing-cloth,  and  the  surface  of  the  leather  is 
rubbed  over  with  a  damp  sponge  to  make  it  appear  just  moist. 
The  tracing  is  fastened  on  to  the  face  of  the  leather  by  means  of 
drawing-pins,  and  the  design  is  traced  over  with,  say,  an  agate 
tracing-point,  thus  impressing  the  lines  into  the  leather.  The 
tracing-cloth   is  removed,  the  leather  is  placed  on  a  slab  of  hard 


60  BOOKBINDING. 

wood  or  zinc,  and  with  a  small  knife  the  outlines  of  the  pattern 
are  sharply  cut  to  a  depth  of  about  half  the  thickness  of  the  leather. 
When  the  pattern  is  cut,  moderately  damp  the  surface  afresh,  and 
with  the  tracing-point  go  over  the  outlines,  thereby  widening  them 
and  giving  them  a  strongly  marked  appearance.  The  ground  may 
then  be  punched  as  a  woodcarver  punches  his  ground  to  throw 
up  the  pattern.  This  is  all  that  is  necessary  and  advisable.  Many 
people  model  up  from  the  back,  but  any  relief  in  leather  complicates 
matters  considerably,  and  is  generally  beyond  the  powers  of  children. 
Some  teachers  may  be  able  to  requisition  tools  and  materials  for 
tooling  in  gold,  silver,  and  aluminium.  It  is  advisable  to  choose 
one's  patterns  for  tools  very  carefully,  and  to  make  the  first  few 
tools  required  ;  not  because  the  tools  will  be  better  made  than  those 
bought  at  the  merchant's,  but  because  in  this  way  one  will  learn 
more  of  the  possibilities  and  limitations  of  a  few  tools  in  arranging 
designs  for  book  covers.     (Fig.  42  gives  a  few  combinations  put 

^^  ^^  A 
o    O    ®    <     C 

o  c  ♦  +  4' 
♦  ▼  i   I 

Fig.  40. 

together  by  using  some  of  the  tools  whosiie  faces  are  represented  in 
Fig.  40.  See  also  the  Frontispiece,  whnteh  is  a  design  executed 
wholly  by  means  of  home-made  tools.)  Round  bar  brass,  |  in.  in 
diameter,  is,  with  the  aid  of  a  few  small  files  of  different  sections, 
very  easily  made  into  tools.  The  end  of  each  piece  of  brass  is  filed 
to  form  a  tang,  which  fits  into  a  plain  cylindrical  handle,  and  the 
other  end  should  be  rubbed  smooth  and  fiat  on  pieces  of  emery 
cloth,  finishing  off  with  the  "  flour  "  degree  of  fineness. 

For  this  class  of  work  the  following  are  essential.  An  alphabet 
of  handle  letters,  leaf  gold,  silver,  or  aluminium,  glair,  and  a  velvet 
pad.  The  alphabet  will  cost  from  10s.  upwards  according  to  size, 
good  gold  leaf  can  be  obtained  at  2s.  6d.  for  twenty-five  sheets  ; 


BOOKBINDING   AND   OTHER    SCHOOL   SUBJECTS. 


61 


silver  leaf  for  about  Is.  per  twenty-five  sheets,  and  aluminium  leaf 
at  about  the  same  price.  Glair  is  obtained  from  white  of  egg  diluted 
with  vinegar.  Albumen  is  now  sold  in  the  form  of  a  yellow  crystal- 
line substance,  and  in  this  form  is  more  convenient  for  school  use. 
It  is  made  up  into  glair  as  follows — 1  oz.  albumen  to  |  pint  of  water, 
or  in  proportion  ;  place  in  a  vessel  in  cold  water  and  stir  once  a 
day  ;  on  the  third  day  it  is  ready  for  use.  Do  not  make  up  more 
than  a  2  oz.  bottle  full  at  one  time,  as,  when  kept  a  long  time  a 
very  unpleasant  odour  is  developed. 

To  print,  say,  the  title  on  the  back  of  a  book,  decide  on  the 
spacing  of  the  separate  words  ;  which  may  have  to  be  placed  one 
above  the  other  as  in  Fig.  41.     Measure  the  back  carefully  and  set 


HISTORY 

OF 
ENGLAND 


Fig.  41. 

out  its  width  and  the  spaces  between  the  words  on  a  piece  of  thin 
paper.  Sort  out  the  handle-letters  required,  and  put  them  on  to  a 
gas  ring  to  heat.  In  order  to  prevent  mistakes  and  save  time, 
the  tools  should  be  placed  in  the  order  in  which  they  will  be  required. 
Fix  the  piece  of  paper  on  a  waste  piece  of  leather,  take  up  the  first 
tool  and  cool  it  on  a  pad  of  damp  cotton  wool  until  it  just  ceases  to 
hiss.  Do  not  place  the  letter  end  of  the  tool  on  the  pad,  or  the  heat 
will  afterwards  run  down  from  the  body  of  the  metal  and  cause 
the  burning  of  the  leather.  Now  place  the  tool  in  position  on  the 
paper  and,  keeping  it  vertical,  press  it  down  firmly  to  form  a  depres- 
sion. Put  the  tool  back  on  to  the  stove.  Follow  on  exactly  in 
the  same  way  with  the  other  tools  until  the  whole  title  is  printed — 
bhnd-tooled — on  the  paper.  Lift  up  the  paper  and  fix  it  on  the 
back  of  the  book.  Take  up  again  the  first  tool,  cool  off  and  put  it 
exactly  into  the  depression  in  the  paper  and  press  firmly,  leaving 
a  depression  in  the  leather.     Again  repeat  with  the  other  letters. 


(  1 1 


Fig.  42. 


62 


*^^flf 


63 


BOOKBINDING   AND   OTHER    SCHOOL   SUBJECTS. 


65 


until  the  whole  title  is  blind-tooled  into  the  book-baek.  Brush  over 
the  letters  with  a  fine  brush  dipped  in  glair  and  leave  to  dry.  Now 
rub  the  leather,  around  and  over  the  blind-tooling,  with  a  pad  of 
cotton  wool  slightly  greased  with  coco-nut  oil.  Apply  very  little 
pressure  (very  little  more  than  the  weight  of  the  cotton  wool  is 
necessary)  or  the  grease  will  be  rubbed  into  the  depressions  and 
prevent  the  adhesion  of  the  gold. 

Take  out  a  leaf  of  gold,  place  it  on  the  cushion,  cut  off  a  strip 
with  a  knife  and,  picking  up  with  a  piece  of  slightly  greased  cotton- 
wool, lay  it  over  the  depressions.     Repeat  until  all  the  tooling  is 


Fig.  45. 


covered  with  gold.  Take  up  the  hot  tools  and  repeat  the  impres- 
sions, taking  care  that  the  whole  of  the  letter  receives  the  pressure. 
Superfluous  gold  can  be  rubbed  off  with  a  piece  of  india-rubber. 
Bookbinder's  rubber  is  best,  as  it  lifts  most  strongly.  Rubbing 
with  clean  cotton-wool  is  usually  quite  sufficient  to  take  off  super- 
fluous gold.  If  it  is  found  that  some  gold  has  not  stuck,  re-glair 
and  go  over  again  with  the  hot  tools.  Solid  brass  wheels  are  made 
for  running  straight  lines.  (See  Fig.  45.)  These  are  essential  when 
laying  on  gold  leaf,  as  an  ordinary  lining  tool  such  as  could  be  used 
for  blind-tooling  would  drag  the  gold  and  spoil  the  line.  A  wheel 
having  a  diameter  about  equal  to  that  of  a  threepenny  bit  will  be 
found  to  be  an  excellent  tool  for  running  free  lines.  A  large  wheel, 
say  2  in.  or  3  in.  in  diameter,  is  best  for  long  straight  lines. 

Gold  may  be  laid  on  "  Rexine  "  cloths  in  exactly  the  same  way 
as  for  leather. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 


HINTS   AND    SUGGESTIONS. 


Head-bands. 

These  are  stuck  or  stitched  on  to  the  head  and  tail  of  tlie  book 
to  afford  a  finish,  and,  in  the  case  of  the  stitched  head-band,  to 
strengtlien  the  ends  of  the  book  against  which  the  fingers  are  generally 
placed  when  pulling  the  book  out  of  the  shelf.  In  most  modern 
work  the  head-band  used  is  cut  from  lengths  of  woven  material 
and  made  to  loop  over  a  core  of  cane,  string,  or  any  other  strong 
foundation.  It  is  made  in  a  large  variety  of  colours,  designs,  and 
sizes,  and  can  be  obtained  in  cotton  and  silk  from  Is.  per  dozen 
yards  upwards. 

For  school  work  it  is  perhaps  advisable  for  a  good  while  to  use 
this  kind  of  head-band,  especially  as  it  may,  if  desired,  be  woven  by 
the  children  themselves. 

The  headbands  are  put  on  just  before  the  fixing  of  the  cloth,  etc., 
which  is  to  cover  the  back ;  after  the  back  has  been  rounded  and  the 
boards  attached.    Fig.  46  illustrates  a  piece  of  "  made  "  head-band 


Fig.  46. 

stuck  in  position  by  means  of  paste.     It  is  obvious  that  this  arrange- 
ment will  add  but  little  to  the  strength  of  the  head  and  tail  of  the 
book. 
To  Stitch  a  Head-band. 

Obtain  a  piece  of  catgut,  vellum,  cane,  or  string,  in  thickness 
a  little  less  than  the  projection  of  the  boards  over  the  book.     Cut 

66 


HINTS   AND   SUGGESTIONS. 


67 


off  about  3  in.  Thread  a  needle  with  button-hole  twist,  choosing 
the  colour  to  match  the  leather  to  be  used  in  binding.  Fix  the 
book  in  a  press  or  vice  as  in  Fig.  47.  Pass  the  needle  in  at  X,  and 
work  it  forward  to  the  back,  so  that  it  comes  to  a  point  in  a  line 
with  the  inside  face  of  the  board,  as  at  Y  (Fig.  48).  Push  the  needle 
through  the  back  of  the  book  at  such  a  depth  that  it  comes  out  just 


Fig.  47. 


Fig.  48. 


below  the  kettle-stitch.  Draw  the  silk  through  until  the  needle 
end  is  about  twice  as  long  as  the  free  end.  Lift  up  the  needle  end 
and  push  in  the  needle  again  at  the  same  place  as  before.  This 
will  form  a  loop  into  which  the  gut  or  cord  will  be  placed.  Pull 
slightly  on  both  ends  of  the  silk  so  as  to  hold  the  cord.    (See  Fig.  50.) 


5— (1042) 


68 


BOOKBINDING. 


Holding  the  free  end  of  the  silk  in  the  left  hand,  bring  up  from 
the  back  of  the  book  with  the  right  hand  the  needle  end  of  the  silk. 
Pass  the  latter  into  the  left  hand  and  hold  taut.  Take  hold  of  the 
free  end  with  the  right  hand,  pass  it  across  the  needle  end,  under 
the  cord,  and  pull  tight.  This  forms  a  small  bead  on  the  top  of  the 
book.     (See  Fig.  49.) 

Now  bring  the  free  end  over  the  cord,  afterwards  pass  it  into  the 
left  hand,  and  hold  taut ;  take  the  needle  end  in  the  right  hand, 
pass  it  across  the  free  end,  under  the  cord,  and  pull  tight  as  before. 


Fig.  49 


Another  bead  will  be  formed,  and  these  operations  repeated  will 
result  in  a  series  of  beads  right  across  the  top  of  the  book.  The 
beads  should  sit  quite  close  on  the  book.  It  is  advisable  to  anchor 
down  the  cord  after  every  three  or  four  stitches.  To  do  this,  repeat 
the  operation  performed  at  the  commencement  of  the  head-band. 
Bring  the  needle  from  the  back,  over  the  cord,  pass  between  the 
leaves  and  through  the  back,  out  below  the  kettle-stitch.  When  a 
line  corresponding  to  XY  has  been  reached  on  the  opposite  side, 
the  silk  must  be  tied  off  at  the  back.  Cut  and  fray  out  the  ends, 
and  paste  them  down  to  the  back.  Cut  the  cord  close  up  to  the 
silk.  Paste  a  piece  of  stiff  paper  over  the  stitches  at  the  back  to 
prevent  any  projection  from  showing  on  the  leather  cover.     Having 


69 


70 


BOOKBINDING. 


worked  the  licad-bancl  on  the  "  head  "  of  tlic  book,  the  latter  is 
reversed  in  the  press  and  tlie  "  tail  "  treated  similarly.  The  chief 
ditftculty  will  be  found  in  keeping  the  beads  regular  ;  but  a  little 
practice,  with  care  in  keeping  an  even  tension,  will  overcome  all 
this. 

Construction  of  a  School  Library  Folio. 

Although  this  article  does  not,  strictl}'  speaking,  come  into  the 
class  of  bookbinding,  a  most  useful  folio  in  book  form  can  be 
produced  by  working  to  the  following  instructions. 

The  foho  is  built  up  in  concertina  fashion  as  in  Fig.  51.     Having 


Fig.  51. 

decided  on  the  size  and  number  of  leaves  (say  10  in.  by  7  in.  and 
fourteen  leaves,  giving  thirty  pages),  cut  two  pieces  of  cardboard 
or  millboard,  lOJ  in.  by  7|  in.,  and  sixteen  sheets  of  paper,  10  in. 
by  7  in.  Bind  the  edges  and  cover  the  surfaces  of  the  cardboard. 
Cut  strips  of  binding  cloth  |  in.  wide  and  10  in.  long.  Take  two 
sheets  of  the  paper,  lay  out  side  by  side  with  |  in.  space  between 
them.  Paste  one  side  of  a  piece  of  cloth,  lay  it  on  to  the  paper, 
and  rub  well  down.  Turn  over  the  papers,  paste  another  strip  of 
cloth,  lay  it  on  exactly  over  the  first  strip.  Rub  well  down  and 
into  the  hinge.    (See  Fig.  52.)     Take  another  sheet  and  two  more 


Fig.  52. 


HINTS   AND    SUGGESTIONS. 


71 


strips  of  cloth.  Lay  the  third  sheet  of  paper  alongside  the  two 
already  fixed,  paste  the  strip  of  cloth  and  lay  it  over  the  joint. 
Reverse  the  papers  and  lay  on  the  covering  strip. 

Repeat  until  all  the  sheets  are  fixed  together.  Fold  it  up  carefully 
and  leave  it  to  set.  When  it  is  dry,  bind  the  two  end  sheets  on  to 
the  cardboard  backs,  paste  the  end  papers  down  to  the  boards,  as 
in  Fig.  51,  and  leave  it  to  set.  The  names  of  the  books  in  the  library 
may  now  be  written  on  the  pages.  When  opened  out,  this  book 
will  be  about  9  ft.  6  in.  long,  and  for  use  as  a  book  which  may  be 
consulted  by  a  number  of  children  at  the  same  time  will  be  most 
valuable.  It  can  be  made  to  hang  by  fixing  tags  of  cloth  after 
every  four  or  five  sheets.  It  could  be  pinned  on  the  dado  rail 
along  one  wall  of  the  class  room.  A  stronger,  but  much  bulkier, 
book  could  be  made  with  leaves  of  cardboard  covered  with  paper 
of  any  desired  colour. 

Construction  of  a  Pocket  Wallet. 

Pocket  wallets  are  very  useful  for  children,  and  they  might  very 
well  make  their  own  in  the  following  way. 

Decide  on  the  size  of  the  book  and  case,  say  6  in.  by  4|  in.  Cut 
three  pieces  of  thin  card  and  lay  them  out  as  shown  in  Fig.  53. 


Fig.  53. 


Allow  an  additional  |  in.  all  round  and  find  the  size  of  the  piece 
of  cloth  required  to  cover  all  three  pieces  on  one  side  and  to  fold 

Paste  the  cloth  on  and  fold  over.     Take 


over  ^  in.  on  the  inside. 


a  piece  of  elastic,  |  in.  or  |  in.  broad,  and  10  in.  long.  Cut  a  slit 
in  the  centre  of  the  middle  piece  of  cardboard,  and  through  this 
from  the  outside,  pass  both  ends  of  the  piece  of  elastic,  leaving 
about  I  in.  for  turning  back  in  opposite  directions  and  gluing  down. 


72 


BOOKBINDING. 


Allowing  a  margin  of  J  in.  or  ^  in.,  cover  the  inside  with  strong  paper 
or  cloth.  Cut  two  more  pieces  of  cardboard,  5^  in.  by  4^  in.  ; 
cover  each  witli  cloth,  allowing  about  |  in.  for  folding  over.  Glue 
or  paste  down  the  overlaps  on  one  long  and  two  short  edges  of  one 
piece  and  one  long  edge  only  of  the  other  piece.  Take  the  latter, 
glue  the  overlaps  on  to  the  right  side  of  the  cloth,  and  place  on  B 
with  the  open  side  on  the  left  so  as  to  leave  an  equal  margin  on  the 
three  sides  1,  2,  3.     Press  down  firmly. 

Cut  two  strips  of  cloth  4J  in.  long  and  1  in.  wide.  Fold  lengthwise 
into  four  equal  folds.  These  will  form  hinges  for  the  pocket.  Glue 
them  down  to  A  as  in  Fig.  54.     Take  the  remaining  piece  of  covered 


71 


rt 


Fig.  54. 


cardboard  and,  gluing  the  top  flanges  XX  of  the  hinge  and  the 
loose  flange  of  the  long  side,  stick  them  down  firmly  and  leave 
them  to  set.  Make  a  small  book  of  thin  plain  paper  as  explained 
in  Chapter  I.  Push  one  side  of  the  book  into  the  narrow  space 
between  the  back  of  the  wallet  at  B  and  the  inside  piece  of  cardboard. 
Close  up,  stretch  the  elastic  band  over  all,  and  the  wallet  is  complete. 
For  fixing  together  such  articles  as  these,  many  people  prefer  stitch- 
ing to  gluing.  For  cloth  and  paper,  glue  will  be  found  quite 
efficient,  and  it  is  not  always  possible,  however  desirable,  to  allow 
boys  to  sew  in  this  way. 

Many  variations  can  be  made  in  this  type  of  article.  The 
children  will  be  found  ready  with  modifications  and  extensions. 
Needle-cases,  card-cases,  season-ticket  holders,  paper-money 
wallets,  stamp  purses,  etc.,  are  all  varieties  of  the  same  type  of 
construction. 

Inter  Alia. 

Some  children  may  commence  stitching  by  laying  down  the  end 
section  first  ;  i.e.,  working  from  the  back  to  the  front  of  the  book. 
Allow  them  to  do  this  ;  it  makes  no  difference  to  the  result  and 
shows  that  they  understand  collation. 


HINTS   AND    SUGGESTIONS.  73 

Look  through  all  books  during  the  course  of  the  stitching  to  find 
out  if  any  sections  are  upside  down. 

When  children  are  stitching  properly  and  well,  encourage  them 
to  take  home  their  work  and  finish  the  operation.  A  great  deal 
of  valuable  lesson-time  is  thus  saved  and  another  link  provided 
between  school  and  home. 

Watch  carefully  the  construction  of  the  kettle-stitch  ;  it  will 
be  neat  if  properly  made,  but  when  wrongly  made,  it  tends  to 
slovenliness  in  finish. 

A  discarded  "  clicker's  "  knife  makes  an  excellent  tool  for  cutting 
cardboard.  (A  "  clicker  "  is  one  who  cuts  out  boot  "  uppers.") 
If  bookbinding  is  being  taken  in  the  Handwork  Room,  the  bench 
vices  will  be  found  quite  efficient  presses  for  small  work. 

When  working  in  glue  on  cloth  or  leather,  thick  Rexines  or 
Pegamoid  should  be  glued  not  pasted  down.  Quick  workers 
should  be  encouraged  to  work  in  glue  in  preference  to  paste. 

When  manipulating  pasted  or  glued  cloths,  keep  a  towel  to  hand 
in  order  that  the  fingers  may  be  kept  clean.  Should  a  spot  of  paste 
get  on  to,  or  work  through  the  surface  of  a  cloth,  it  will  probably 
take  off  the  gloss.  This  may  be  restored  by  means  of  a  coating  of 
thin  varnish  or  a  coating  of  glair.  Paste  made  from  rye-flour  does 
not  work  through  the  texture  of  cloth  so  easily  as  that  made  from 
wheat-flour. 

When  thin  boards  are  used  for  backs  and  the  end-papers  are 
being  pasted  down,  the  easiest  plan  is  to  paste  that  surface  of  the 
end  leaf  which  is  to  be  in  contact  with  the  board,  and  then  close 
down  the  board  on  to  the  pasted  surface — not  lift  up  the  end  leaf 
to  the  board. 

Accuracy  of  the  "  individual's "  highest  capacity  must  be 
demanded  at  every  stage,  and  the  results  in  very  many  cases  will 
be  of  a  very  high  standard  of  excellence. 


Printed  by  Sir   Isaac  Pitman  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  Bath,  England 
Q — (1042) 


A 


1 


Ml  Mi 


■%a3AiNn-: 


^^\\E11NIVER% 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below.  »  'ct 


"^•^mtm 


-j^^HIBRAR 


^.OFCAlIf 


"^^Aavaa 


NO  PHON|E  RENEWALS    )! 
OCT2  5198J  ^""^    •^*™™ 


%a3AIN(I 


%il3AINii-: 


jn> 


'VAOvaaira^' 


"V/VBTUBIl  J" 


•o 

S    S 

31^        %a3MN 


>•     = 


f      _ 


^ILIBRARY^^ 


'^^OJIIVDJO'^ 


^tllBRARYQ^. 


_  ^  o 


%a3AiNn-3Wv»       "^(i/ojnvjjov 


^HIBR/ 


^(!/OJIl\ 


^UIBRARYO^ 


^(JOJIWDJO^^      '^«J/OJ11V3-JO'^ 


g—     3  1158  01185  2166 


^OFCAllFOff^ 


^0FCAIIF0% 


^(?Aavaaiii^ 


,^WEUfJIVERS'//j 


^Aavaan-^ 


^lOSANCElfX;> 


^lOSANCEl^^ 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


■^JJiJONvsoi^     ^aaMNdWv      '^miivjjo''^    %ojnv>jo* 


I' 


^^WEUNIVER^        .VlOSANCElfjj> 


^riiJDNVSOl^ 


^/ya3AiNa-3WV^ 


^OFCAIIFO/?^      ^OFCAIIFO/?^ 

^oAavaain^      ^(?Aavaaii# 


ce  - 


,^tUBRARYa<-        -^^IIIBRARYQ^^ 


^ojiwjjo^     '^^aojiwDjo^ 


^WEUNIVERJ/A 


^lOSANCElfj-^ 


%a3AIN[l-3W'^ 


^OFCAllFOff/^      ^OFCAt1F0% 


^5WEUfJIVER% 


v^lOSANCElfX^ 

O 


»  SC- 


^^Aavjian-i^"^      ^^AavaaiH^       ^riijoNvsoi^     "^aaAiNniwv 


^\WEUNIVERX'^      ^lOSANCElfX;^ 


-j>^lHBRARYQ^       ^HIBRARYOr^ 


<ril3DNVS01^        %a3AINn-3\^^  ^OJIIVDJO"^       -^iHOJIlVDJO-^ 


I 


■<VAFIIIJI\/FDC/» 


v.inc.AurFirf. 


,  rvcrAiiCADi. 


•  rvcrAiimDi 


wmmmimm 


«>- 


